A Sister Lost
by Moon Frost18
Summary: It all started with a nightmare..the memories came back, and Ari, the sister he thought he had lost forever suddenly reentered his life. But the two wolves had some major challenges ahead of them before the their lives would ever be normal again..
1. Memories

Ch. 1

"Ari! Run for it!" kiba yelled, as he helped his younger sister escape the fire that had engulfed the area where their pack had lived for many years.

Not long ago, humans had begun encroaching on their lands, and while the pack had done their best to hold them off, their attacks hand only succeeded in angering the humans even more than before. Now they had found where the packs territory was and had set fire to the land around it. At the first sent of smoke, the alpha male had ordered all the able adults to try to extinguish the fires the best they could, but when this plan failed, he knew that the packs only hope for survival was to try to get the children to safety.

Now as Kiba ran, pushing Ari in front of him in hopes to shield her from the flames, he felt panic take control over his actions. What if their parents weren't able to get out? What would they do? Where would they go? He had no answers for the questions that poured into his mind. All he knew was that he had to protect her with everything he had. Distantly, he heard Ari howl a warning to him, and then, searing heat surrounded him. A tree had fallen between the two siblings and had quickly caught on fire. He heard Ari yell out to him, and he knew that he could do nothing to help her escape any longer. He yelled at her to stay away and to get as far away as she could from the fires and the humans that had caused them. The last thing that he heard was the long and mournful howl from Ari as she listened to her brother and left, and then, everything went black….


	2. Awakening

Disclaimer: Again, I don't own any of the WR characters, the only ones that I claim ownership of are my characters that I created.

CH. 2

Gasping he awoke from the nightmare. He heard the stirring of the youngest member in his new ragtag pack, Toboe. "Kiba, are you alright?" He heard the worry plain in the young boys voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just a bad dream that's all." He responded, shaking off the last remainders of the haunting dream.

"Well, what was your dream about?" asked the ever-curious pup.

"...It was a dream...about my sister" Kiba replied softly.

"I never knew you had a sister, you've never mentioned her." Said the pup with wide eyes.

"Yeah, I had one...I may still have one if she got out of that forest alive" said Kiba with a sigh.

Toboe glanced at him with even more curiosity than before- "what do you mean if?" he asked after a moments silence.

So Kiba explained the fire and the events that followed. "So after I told her to leave, I got hit on the head with a branch from a falling tree, which knocked me out for a while, and when I came to, an old Indian who knew what I was had found me. The fire had pretty much died down by now, so we were able to leave safely. He took care of me until I was old enough to go out into the world on my own." Musing, Kiba wondered, "You know? I really haven't thought about her until now. I wonder if she survived or not?"

Smiling, "Well, if she's anywhere as determined as you are, I'm sure that she did!" Toboe said.

Chuckling, Kiba ruffled Toboe's hair "Thanks kid. Now get some rest, we've got a long day ahead of us."

And with that, the two curled back up and went to sleep, drawing comfort for the sleeping forms of Hige, Tsume, Blue and Cheza.

The next day, the pack of wolves awoke, and set off on another long day of travel on their quest to find Paradise.


	3. Seperate in body, but not in mind

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the WR characters, just my own.

A/N: No flames, just constructive criticism and ideas for continuing the story.

CH. 3

Sitting straight up and breathing hard, with clear blue eyes that were filled with tears, Ari awoke, from the dream where she had to leave her brother to die in that forest of flames. Taking in a long and shuddering breath, she wiped the tears from her face and sighed. "That's weird. Why would I remember that, that memory came out of the blue…"

Flashback

Almost 13 years ago, that fire had happened. Ari ran, stumbling over fallen trees and boulders that appeared in her path. Behind her she heard the howl from Kiba cut painfully short. She blinked back tears and kept running "He told me to get to safety, I owe it to him to live" she thought to herself.

After what felt like an eternity of running, she reached the lake that was on the outskirts of her packs territory. Without hesitating, she dove into the cool water and swam for the far shore. However, she had forgotten in her rush to escape, the legend that surrounded the lake, and because of this, it was considered a sacred place.

The lake itself had a spell laid on it. One where when entered by one who was in dire need of help, a portal would open in the waters, and transport the person to a different place, one where they would be safe. And Ari just so happened to be a person in dire need of help. Without knowing it, she had activated the spell of the lake. The water around her began to glow a brilliant blue, and suddenly, a whirlpool appeared in front of her and began to pull her in.

Struggling, she tried her hardest to free herself from the pull, but with no luck. She spun faster and faster, all the while yelling for help, knowing none would come. As she approached the center, Ari gave one last attempt to free herself, and then, she was swallowed up… And appeared in an entirely different world, a world where wolves were still known to exist.

Shakily, Ari got to her feet, and looked around. She had landed in front of a building that said Red Cross on it. She had no idea what those words meant, but it looked like a place that would definitely protect her from the elements, and the temperature was dropping, and she was wet still from her swim, so she headed inside. Once inside, she blinked in surprise. It was so…clean... The walls were shockingly white and everything looked very sterile. There was a lady sitting at a desk that was staring at her in surprise.

"Honey, where'd you come from? Are you alright?" asked the lady at the desk.

Ari walked over to the lady and asked her, "Please, I'm all alone, can I stay her for the night?"

"Yes of course dear, I'll set up a bed for you right away." She gestured for Ari to sit back down, and then went off into a back room and laid out some blankets and clean clothes that looked like they'd fit the girl. Walking back into the room, she realized she should ask where the girl's family was, so she did.

Promptly, the girl's eyes filled with tears that threatened to spill over, but never did. Ari told her an edited version of her story, leaving out the fact that her and her family were wolves of course. The woman was filled with sympathy, and went over to her computer printed out a form that would place the girl under government care until she was adopted. She helped Ari fill out the form and once it was complete, dropped it in the box with the rest of the outgoing mail. She then guided her to the prepared room, showed her the bathroom and brought some food for her to eat, and then left the room to give her some privacy. Ari quickly ate the food, changed and then fell into a deep sleep. The woman came back a short while later and discovered that Ari and fallen asleep, so she turned off the light and shut the door. A few days later, Ari was placed into foster care, and a few months or so later- she was adopted.

The couple who had adopted her were young, having been married for only 7 years. But no matter how hard they tried, they could not have a child. So, they decided to adopt. They had applied and were waiting for a reply, when one day in the mail, the received the letter saying that they were approved to adopt and they wanted to arrange a meeting between them and a young girl of about 5, who matched what they were looking for. The date came and they met with the foster family and their potential new child.

At first glance, the two loved her. She was sweet, well mannered and one could already tell that she would grow into a beautiful woman. Ari was nervous about meeting them, but her foster mom assured her that they would be wonderful people, and she relaxed when she realized that they were indeed. They reminded her of her parents and she felt at ease around them instantly. After that meeting, the papers were finalized and she became the daughter of Adam and Lynn Hampton.

End flashback

It had been 12 years from that day, Ari realized, the day when she became part of the family she had been adopted into.

Read and review please!


	4. A normal day?

Disclaimer: Once again- I do not own any of the WR characters except for the ones of my own creation.

A/N:

Ch. 4

"Ari! It's time to get up! You're going to be late for school again!" yelled Lynn Hampton from the kitchen near her daughter's room. She giggled to herself as she heard a crash and the resulting yelp as Ari fell out of her bed. Again. It was part of her daily routine it seemed. She was graceful in every sense of the word, except for when it came to getting out of a bed.

Rushing into the kitchen, Ari grabbed the cup of orange juice that Lynn had laid out for her and chugged it down. She had decided on a black skirt that reached mid thigh and a white lacey tank top and white flip-flops. And as usual she wore the necklace that she had worn since her birth, a blue green stone held on by a delicate silver chain.

"Bye Lynn! I'll see you after school!" Ari said as she leaned over to give her mom a kiss on the cheek.

"Bye honey, be safe." Lynn replied as Ari ran out the door.

Running, Ari raced down the sidewalk towards school, praying that she wouldn't be late yet again. Her attendance record couldn't take any more tardys and she didn't feel like a detention. Luck was on her side today, and she made it to class with 3 minutes to spare.

"Wow, you look like you ran to school. Wake up late again?" asked her best friend Ally.

"Yeah… I just can't seem to ever get up on time. I mean I sleep through my alarm and so I never wake up on time…" Ari said with a sigh.

Ally giggled at her friend. Ari had had a problem being on time to anything for as long as she could remember. Ari glanced at her friend and started laughing as well.

"I'm hopeless aren't I?' she said while laughing. Ally smiled and nodded in return, "Yup. Pretty much seems that way". And then the school day officially began.

"Man, I can't believe it. One more day and then spring break starts!" thought Ari with a smile. She had been looking forward to lounging around and not having to wake up early for a while. Ari was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she didn't see the two boys in front of her until she ran straight into them.

"Ahh!" all three of them yelled as they careened into the floor in a tangle of limbs and books. The two boys were the quickest to recover and stood up quickly. One began gathering her books as the other helped her up.

"I am so sorry!" Ari said to both the boys, her face turning bright red.

"Hey no problem, it's fine, neither of us were hurt. And besides, its not every day that one gets blindsided by a beautiful girl." Said the one who helped her up. "I'm James and this is John, and yes, we are twins," this last bit coming from the boy who handed her the books that she had dropped.

At this she took a closer look at the two boys. Both had short, black spiked hair, warm brown eyes, tan skin with slim but athletic builds. Overall, pretty handsome guys she noted with a smile.

Studying her in return, both boys noted that she was rather attractive. She had layered black hair that reached mid back, stunning blue eyes, and an athletic build. "You're the Senior class vice president aren't you?" asked James.

"Yup! That I am." Ari said with a smile. "And you two are on ASB too aren't you? Junior class reps right?"

"Uh huh, not a very impressive position I'll say though." replied John with a smile.

The minute bell rang and Ari started. "Oh! I've got to get to class! It was nice meeting you two, and I'm so sorry for running into you!" she said as she ran away to her next class. "Damn! She's hot! I've got to get to know her!" thought both of the twins. Little did they know, but they would get to know her very well.

In another world, Ari's homeland, the oracle chuckled to herself. She had just found the prefect bait for Lord Darcia to use to lure the wolf back to her homeland so that he could open a Paradise for the nobles.


	5. On the move again

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the WR characters, the only ones that I claim ownership of are my characters that I created.

A/N: Sorry its taken a while to upload these new chapters, ive had finals to deal with sadly…I'll try to finish the rest and I'll post the chapters as I finish them!

On the Move again

Kiba was tired. Tired of the constant searching, the fighting, and the struggle to simply stay alive. But he didn't let any of it cloud his mind. He knew that as the leader, he had to be the strong one, the one who always held a brave face no matter what. So, for their sakes, he maintained a sure façade. But in truth, he had never been more unsure of himself than he was at the moment.

Ever since he had that nightmare that had brought a dark memory to the surface, he had been doubting himself. He had promised Aria that he would take her with him to Paradise, that they had to go together, and now here he was, headed straight for it. Without her. Was he wrong to not try harder to escape from the fires that night and to travel with her and protect her? He didn't know the answer to that, but something in his gut told him that Aria was indeed still alive. Somewhere. All he had to do was find her.

A deep voice tingled with irritation and worry brought Kiba back from his thoughts.

"Kiba" growled Tsume in a low voice, "Jagara's troops, and they're nearby. Hige just came back from scouting. We've got to get out of here, and fast."

Kiba had never heard Tsume sound quite so worried, and he wasn't sure that he knew the cause of it. They had faced Jagura's troops before and had escaped with ease, suffering only minor wounds from the scuffles. So why so worried now? However, as the pack ran through the forest towards safety, they came across a group of roughly 30 foot soldiers, and upon seeing them and their weapons, Kiba felt his heart sink.

He now realized the reason for the older mans desire to evade the soldiers quickly. These soldiers were not like any of the ones they had previously fought against. These men were different. And far more deadly looking. The packs chances of escaping alive were looking slimmer by the moment.

Moving quickly to surround the group, the soldiers formed a circle with such ease that one could tell they were well prepared for anything to happen.

"Surrender peacefully and you will not be killed", said the leader of the squad in a deep metallic sounding voice. "However, should you refuse to comply, we will be forced to subdue you by means of force." At this the squad, in one fluid motion all raised and equipped their shields' force fields, effectively trapping the wolves in one area.

With a glance at the rest of the pack, Kiba nodded and they all dropped their human forms, and as wolves, fell into fighting stances. They might die, but they were not going to go down without a fight that much was clear. However, before the fighting could even begin, all 5 wolves were suddenly struck with drowsiness. Shaking his head in a vain attempt to clear it, Kiba was able to glance around at his pack mates. Each and every one of them was slowly succumbing to sleep, and he could tell that whether or not they wanted to, they were going to go with this man.

"Why?" he asked in a faint voice tinged with a snarl of frustration, too soft to be heard by the captain of the squad. But he was heard.

The man only smirked and laughed, "Lord Darcia and Lady Jagura have much need for you and a certain wolf that you once knew." And this was the last thing that Kiba heard before he was swallowed up into oblivion.

Hours later, Kiba awoke to the sound of a metal gate clanging shut. When he opened his eyes, he saw that he was being held in a medium sized cell. Across the aisle way was another row of cells similar to his, and he could only guess that he was in a row much like that one.

The stench of fear, pain, anger, blood and tears were clearly present in the chamber.Stiffly getting to his feet, Kiba walked towards the front of his cell and looked out. Eyes going wide in anger, the first thing that he saw was his pack divided and chained in separate cells.

He called out softly to each of them, and gradually, everyone was woken up. Out of the 5 of them, Kiba was the only one left unchained, while the rest of the group was shackled to the walls by thick chains anchored directly into the wall.

"How did they manage to knock us out that quickly, and without us noticing until we were almost out?" asked Hige.

"No idea. Maybe the force field was designed to do more than just hold us in." Kiba said quietly. He was still troubled by what the squad captain had said to him.

"What did he mean, another wolf I once knew?" Kiba mused to himself out loud.

"What was that, Kiba?" asked Blue.

"Before I was knocked out, the squad captain said that he was bringing us to Darcia and Jagura because they needed me, as well as a wolf I knew once. I was wondering who this wolf could be?" Kiba replied.

"Hey!" Toboe yelped out excitedly. "Maybe, they were talking about one of the wolves we met on our journey! Maybe Zali or someone!" he continued rambling on for a while until he realized the rest of the group was just staring at him, and at this point he just slowly trailed off. "Or, maybe not…" and then he was off again as an idea struck him. "It might be a survivor from your original pack Kiba!" Toboe said excitedly.

Sighing Kiba shook his head. "Impossible. Everyone I know died…except…no…it couldn't be her…" and with this Kiba shook his head and refused to answer any questions about "her" and forbade Toboe from speaking about her. And with this, Kiba retreated to the back of his cell, curled up and went to sleep until a guard woke him up and removed him from the cell.

Thanks! Please review, No flames please though…


	6. Edgy Much?

Disclaimer: Must I really write this again? Sigh Fine. Wolf's Rain characters? Nope don't own them, just the ones that I created.

Sighing, Ari reflected on her day as she walked home via the path that she took daily. She loved walking by the parks and the lake that she lived near; they were always so comforting for some reason. Looking ahead, she saw her favorite fountain coming up and she decided to take a rest and sit on the edge of the basin. This fountain was different than all the others in the park.

For one, instead of the stone being plain and gray, it was a brilliant jade green. The other notable difference with this fountain was that it had actual shapes carved into it as opposed to the simple cement molds of the others. This fountain had wolves entwined around the center of the fountain, and the base was decorated with large flowers. She had always felt drawn to it ever since she came here as a child, but she had never quite realized why.

Smiling, she sat down on the lip of the basin and fed some breadcrumbs from her sandwich to the koi that swam in the fountain. As the fish darted around eating her crumbs, she glanced up to watch the other park visitors. There were children running around chasing one another and laughing while their mothers sat a chatted amongst themselves, all the while keeping a watchful eye on their children. Aria felt a twinge of sadness twist in her heart at this. It was times like this, watching all the happy families running around that made her really miss her true family. Shaking her head, she cleared away those thoughts. "It wont do me any good to be all depressed over them. After all, they're dead, right?" she thought to herself. She saw there for a while longer, watching the fish dart around and the occasional child try to catch it, before she decided to head home.

As she headed down the stone path that lead to the exit of the park, her sharp hearing picked up the sound of quick footsteps behind her. Right as they neared her, she spun around, already on the defensive, in case the person meant her harm, raising her left hand to strike the one that was extended to grab her arm.


	7. Green tea with a dash of mint

Disclaimer: The only characters that i own are the ones that i made up, the rest are otherwise owned by someone else.

Hand raised to strike, with a growl forming itself in the back of her throat, Ari spun around to face whoever was behind her. She hadn't been able to place the scent, although it seemed familiar, so she was rather wary of whoever it could be.

"Whoa! Hang on now!" said the startled boy. "We met earlier today remember? I'm one of the guys that you ran into at school. I'm James." He said seeing the confusion in her eyes as she tried to remember which twin he was. Relaxing, Ari dropped her hand and smiled at him sheepishly. "Sorry about that James!" 'Guess I'm a tad jumpy today…' Ari thought to herself. Looking at James with new curiosity, she decided to ask him what he was doing there in the park.

James laughed and just shrugged. "Guess I just felt like coming here today. Then I saw you and I decided to come over and say hi. That was probably the fastest reaction I've seen from someone in a long time." He said with a good-natured grin.

Ducking her head in embarrassment, "I am so sorry about that" Ari said, "I guess I'm a bit jumpy today that's all." She continued "I haven't been sleeping all that well lately, guess it must be affecting me when I'm awake now."

Smiling gently, James shook his head "Hey, its no big deal" he said as they walked along the path.

Looking ahead, James noted with a smile that they were approaching a small coffee shop. "Hey, would you like something to drink? My treat." he asked as they drew near.

"Oh no! I couldn't ask you to get me something." She replied, shaking her head.

"Fine. So don't ask, just tell me." James replied with a playful smile. "Better yet, how about I just surprise you?" he said as he walked towards the café. "Sit." He ordered as he walked away.

Ari watched him go up to the cashier, who happened to be Ally, and order two drinks with a mild amusement until a thought struck her. 'Wait. Does he like me? Or is he just being friendly? I mean he's definitely cute and all, but he couldn't possibly like me, could he?'

Her thoughts were interrupted right then as James walked back towards her with his hands behind his back and a mischievous smile playing on his lips. "So, pick your poison. Left or right hands?" he said, smile still gracing his face.

Looking at him with a raised eyebrow, she smiled. "Right." He moved the right hand from behind his back and handed it to her. It was her favorite, green tea with a bit of mint. He then moved his other hand from behind his back, and Ari began to laugh. Both drinks were exactly the same.

"What made you choose this?" she asked curiously. James gave her another smile and laughed. "Pretty simple really. The cashier said you order it every time you go in there." He said still laughing.

Ari giggled, "Was the cashiers name Ally?" she asked, knowing that it was. "I'm pretty sure it was." He said after a brief pause. Ari made a mental note to thank her friend later that night. "So. Do you buy drinks for girls that you just met very often?" she asked with a playful smirk as she took a sip of the tea.

James gave her a small smile in return and his face flushed slightly. "No. Just the ones that I think are beautiful and who knock me to the floor from behind at school." Ari glanced at him in surprise at this. 'Beautiful eh?' she thought to herself, 'I can live with that one. No ones ever really called me that.'

The two sat and talked for a little while until Ari noticed how dark it was getting. "Oh no…I have to get home soon before it gets too dark!" she said worriedly. "Well, how about I walk you home? I'd hate for you to walk through the woods there in the dark, and I'm headed that way home anyways." James said, brown eyes looking at her with concern when he saw how worried she was. "You wouldn't mind would you?" he asked.

"Not at all! As long as its not too much trouble for you." Ari replied. James simply shook his head, "Not at all, I'd be glad to."

The woods were darker and more foreboding than she ever remembered them being. 'I'm actually kind of glad to have someone with me through here right now' she thought. Ari had been in more than her fair share of fights and scuffles, and had the scars to prove it, but it wasn't something that she displayed on a regular basis. Life was easier to handle when people didn't think that you were stronger than you should be, let alone if you had a special ability or two.

"You're quiet all of a sudden," James said, nudging her shoulder with his, "What's up?" he asked. "Oh nothing much. Just thinking." She replied.

"About…?" he asked trailing off, hoping that she would continue. Ari simply shook her head, "It's nothing." Narrowing her eyes and sharpening her already keen eyesight she glanced around them. Something was definitely not right. Where were the sounds of the birds and animals as they settled for the night? She couldn't even catch the scent of a squirrel or any other animal. Something was up for sure, she knew that much. Ari felt her hackles rise as she tried to figure what could have caused this change in the woods. They felt almost threatening to her. Not a leaf stirred, not even a slight breeze.

James glanced at the now silent teen, and caught sight of the tenseness on her face. "Hey, relax! We're almost out of here, it'll be okay!" he said, trying to make her smile again, or at least look a little less…intense.

Ari turned to him "Promise me that after we get to my house, you'll go straight home." She said after a pause.

"Umm sure. Not a problem, any reason why?" he asked.

"Something just doesn't feel right here. Whatever's going to happen, I don't want you to get caught up in it." She stated.

James studied her worried face for a brief moment and then nodded. "You're right. Something feels wrong here. There's not a sound out there besides us, is there." He said after listening to the silence. "I think that I'd like to get out of here as soon as possible, what do you think?" he asked her.

Ari nodded, "Let's get out of here." With that, the two walked quickly to the end of the path.

Once on the street, it was as though a fist unclenched from around the two, they could breathe normally again. Ari stopped in front of a medium sized ranch style house. "This is my stop." She said with a smile, "Thanks for walking me home, it was nice to have company." she said as she reached out and squeezed his hand. "Please, be careful walking home."

James nodded, "It was my pleasure, you were pretty good company yourself." He replied with a smile. He squeezed the slender hand that held his own, and turned to walk down the sidewalk.

"Hey," Ari called softly, "Want to hang out a bit tomorrow?"

James paused and turned back "If you'd like to, I'm willing." He replied, brown eyes filled with relief.

"I'd love to" Ari said with a smile.

James nodded, "Great, I'll see you at school and we can decided when and where alright?" Ari nodded back, and waved at him as he turned back to continue down the sidewalk.

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	8. Home again

Ch. 8

Later that night, as James lay on his bed in the room he shared with John, he replayed the time he spent with Ari in his head. He didn't like thinking what she would have done had she not realized it was him when she had spun around. He had noticed that she wore a fair amount of scars, most looked like they had been from fights. She was stronger than most, he got the feeling. When she had squeezed his hand before they parted, he had to fight not to wince; she had a pretty strong grip, especially for a girl. Her arms and legs were clearly toned from the long runs that she said she often went on, and her hair color was pretty unusual. He made a note to ask her about how she got her hair that way; after all, it couldn't be natural, could it?

Sighing, he rolled over onto his stomach and closed his eyes as he stretched out on his bed. He decided it was time to try to sleep a bit. Not two minutes later however, he heard the door to the room open and click shut again. He felt a tap on the shoulder and he groaned.

"Don't be lazy! I want to talk to you for a second, and then you can go back to pretending to sleep!" said an all too familiar voice that was the mirror of his own.

This said, James found himself being forcefully rolled onto his back. "What John?" he asked, facing his twin with a sigh.

"Well. Aren't we in a cheerful mood?" his twin said with a lazy grin. "Anyways, I saw you walking with that girl, what was her name…oh yeah, Ari, in the park, what do you think of her?" John asked curiously.

James looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "What do you care? You're interested in that other girl." He stated flatly.

John looked at him in surprise. James was never that blunt. To anyone. "Just curious. If you plan on dating her, I want to know that she's a good match for you." He replied evenly.

"You never ask if I approve of half of your dates, which I usually don't." James replied, "So why should you care who I date? And anyways, I never said I was that interested in her." he said.

"That's because you're my little brother," John said with a smirk, "I want you to be happy with whoever you choose to date, and if I have to interview them, I will." he said.

"Whatever, you're only older than me by 2 minutes. Can I go back to sleep now? I have my last finals tomorrow, even if you don't." James replied with a sigh.

"Yeah sure. Hey. If you plan on seeing her again tomorrow, try some of these places to hang out." John replied as he handed a slip of paper to him and walked out of the room with a wave over his shoulder.

Looking at the paper that John had left with him, he flipped it open and looked at it. 'Some of these places aren't that bad really.' He thought to himself. ' I'll actually have to thank him. He can really surprise me sometimes.' With that he rolled over with a smile and fell asleep.

Outside in the woods where the two teens had walked through earlier, the oracle smiled as she finalized her plans to bring back the silver wolf. If only she wasn't so cautious and that boy hadn't been with her, she was sure she could have captured the wolf. However, she now abandoned those plans and made new ones. And these would be sure to work. One way, or another, the wolf would come back to them.

back in Jagura's Keep

Back in the cells where the pack of wolves were being held, Kiba was furious. He had refused to cooperate with the Nobles and had attacked three of the guardsmen. And now, he was collared. The thick leather strap encircled his throat and was attached to a chain nailed to the wall.

Normally such a collar wouldn't have posed a big threat to him, but this one was different. It had short spikes not on the outside, but on the inside, so if he moved wrong or struggled, the spikes would slice into his skin. When he had first found out he wore a collar, he struggled against it, and now his chest, neck and hands were stained with his own blood. The skin of his neck was so raw from the chaffing and the spikes, and nothing irritated him more at the moment than not being able to get it off.

A clang from nearby told him that a guardsman was back in the room, as well as his unbearable stench. Above all else, Kiba hated the scent of the Nobles and their lackeys. The man appeared at his cell door and pressed the key sequence that would open the door. He stood aside and another man stepped in the cell. Flowing black hair and an aristocratic face marred only by an eye patch graced the Noble.

"Darcia." Kiba growled. "What do you want with my pack and me? Why keep us here?"

Kneeling by the still drugged wolf, Darcia nodded to the guard outside the cell, "Bring the bands and shackle his hands. It should be safe to move him now." The guard left briefly and rummaged through a sack and gathered up four thick leather bands with chain connecting them. The guard slipped them around each hand and foot, tightening each to the last possibly notch, making it impossible for Kiba to slip free.

Darcia looked at the now shackled and bleeding wolf and smiled coldly. "What I need you for is of no concern to you. You will serve your purpose and then we will dispose of you and your ragtag pack."

Turning to the guard, Darcia gave his next orders, "Take him to TR1, let the doctors do what they will." And with that, the Noble turned and left the room.

Kiba snarled at the guard as he approached him, "Don't you dare touch me." The guard swiftly rapped him upside the head with a heavy club, and that was the last that Kiba saw or remembered.

The guard placed the unconscious wolf on the operating table and turned to the three doctors that stood nearby. "Lord Darcia says that you are to run whatever tests that you need to run to achieve his goals." This said, the guard turned and left the room.

The doctors quickly assembled the various tools that they would need. One doctor shaved patches of fur so that needles could be placed to draw and test blood, the other cleaned the shaved areas, and the last placed the needles and hooked up the IV drip and connected the machines that would run various tests on the wolf.

Read and Review!


	9. Paradise?

Disclaimer: I don't own WR, just my characters.

She couldn't move. Her arms and legs were chained and she could barely breathe. How did this happen? How did she manage to get caught like this? She didn't know, all that she did know was that she wanted out, and she wanted to hurt whoever was keeping her chained. She felt needles pierce her skin and she whined at the flicker of pain that clouded her foggy mind, when suddenly, she felt something nip her ear.

Gasping, Ari woke up, and attempted to sit up. Her hair was all in her face, but before she could do anything about it, she discovered that she first had to untangle her sheets from around her. She managed to free herself from the constraining covers and dumped the majority of them on the floor. Swiping one hand across her face, she cleared away the tangled mass of hair that was now damp with sweat and tears from the nightmare. She noticed the pile of sheets on the floor begin to move, and slowly a paw appeared.

"Kira! What are you doing in my room?" she said as she scolded her mothers' ever-curious kitten. She lifted the small fur ball from underneath the sheets and placed her on her stomach."I guess I owe you one for waking me up from that dream. I don't know what's been causing these odd nightmares. They're always of Kiba, but he's dead right?" Sighing, Ari absent-mindedly petted the kitten as it purred away. She decided to lie back down and try to get a little bit more sleep before her alarm rang for school. Closing her eyes, Ari took deep breaths until sleep overcame her.

A few hours later, Ari woke up to the sound of her radio playing one of her new favorite songs "Paralyzer" by Finger Eleven. Stretching, she popped her back and her shoulder, and then proceeded to grab the clothes that she had laid out the night before and headed to the shower. After a long warm shower and preparation for school, she was now ready to face her last day of finals testing. Ari wandered slowly out into the kitchen and put two slices of bread into the toaster and got the jam from the fridge.

Lynn was standing near the bay window overlooking the forest behind the house holding two mugs of coffee. "Here. Thought you might like something with caffeine to keep you awake during testing today." She said with a wink. "Thanks Lynn." Ari replied with a smile. Lynn had long since given up asking Ari to call her "mom", she knew that she could never truly take the place of the family that the young girl had lost, but she had accepted it, she knew that Ari appreciated all that they had done for her over the years. Somehow that made her next words even harder to say. Lynn desperately wished that her husband was here to help her explain what would be happening over the next few days to Ari, but he was out to sea and wasn't due back in port for several more months. Lynn took a deep breath and simply said it. "Honey, we need to talk." Ari glanced at her adoptive mother with worry. What could be wrong?

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Well, remember how I said I might be called away for work for a bit of time?

Seeing her daughter nod, she plunged on forward, "Well, they need me to go over to Hong Kong for a while and sort out a situation there. They said that I would be gone for roughly three weeks to a month. Do you think that you'd be okay if I left you here by yourself?" she asked Ari.

Frowning slightly, Ari thought 'well it has its bonuses and downfalls, but I think I could handle it.' "Yeah, I think I'd be ok. But, what would you tell the school? That you're leaving me unsupervised? I doubt that they'd be too pleased with that." She told Lynn with a small smile. At that, Lynn had to laugh, leave it to Ari to make a bad situation more bearable. "I'll explain everything to them, I'm sure that they will understand. I'm so glad that you aren't too upset over this." Ari smiled, "No, you said it might happen, so I pretty much prepared just in case. When would you be leaving? In a few weeks?" Lynn's smile quickly faded. "Actually Ari, I'd have to leave in about two days." She told her softly.

"What?!? That's a great heads up." Ari said, rather surprised at the speed of Lynn's departure. "So you'll be missing my graduation, and prom…" she said softly. "Ari, I am so sorry, if I can get in and out of there I'll be back in time, but unless everything goes smoothly, it's not looking too great. I'm so sorry Ari, I really am." Ari shook her head "No it's fine. Don't rush on my account; I'll have someone tape it for you. Just get there and come back soon okay?" Smiling gently at Ari, Lynn nodded. "I'll try my hardest. Now go eat and get to school, we can finish talking whenever you get home today." Ari nodded, gave her a kiss on the cheek and left the room. She grabbed her toast and slapped on a bit of jam, grabbed her stuff and ate breakfast on the way out the door. She walked out the front gate and turned to latch it. As she did so, she got the odd feeling that she was being watched.

When she turned around, she nearly had a heart attack. "What are you trying to do? Kill me?" she asked the twin that had appeared on the sidewalk behind her. "Good morning to you too," said the boy who stood in front of her, "I thought I'd walk with you, since James already left for school, he had some studying to do this morning for his finals." Ari rubbed her head. "John right? Man, you two are kinda hard to tell apart, until you see the differences…and this early in the morning…" she mumbled to herself. John grinned as he listened to her. She really was beautiful; he could see what James saw in her. 'That hair's pretty cool, I wonder how she makes it turn like that.' Ari laughed and snapped her fingers in front of his face, "Hello? Staring isn't polite you know." She stated. He rubbed his head sheepishly, "Sorry, let's walk, or else we'll be late." The two headed towards the woods.

As they entered the shaded darkness of the woods, Ari stiffened. It was that same feeling, the one of tension so tight it constrained her very breathing. That feeling of…wrongness. John glanced over and noticed the sharpness of her gaze and the tightness in her jaw. "Are you alright?" He reached out and placed a hand on her arm.

The second he did so, she jumped, startled. Her eyes were wide with fury and he jerked back. Realizing what had happened; she shook her head, clearing the wolf from her vision, and sending her to the back corner of her mind. "I'm sorry John, you just startled me, that's all." John smiled at her, "Nah, it's ok. I shouldn't have grabbed your arm like that." They continued down the winding dirt path chatting about whatever came to mind. John glanced at her while she laughed at a joke, 'weird, when I touched her, its like something flickered inside of her. Her eyes, I swear that they changed colors…and that expression was almost…animalistic' he thought to himself.

"Hey! We're almost out" she called with a smile. "Race you!" she called over her shoulder as she jogged down the path. "Hey! No fair, you got a head start!" he called running after her, pushing his thoughts to the back of his mind.

Ari won with ease, glad to have a chance to stretch her legs for the first time in over two weeks. John caught up with her, breathing a little hard, but smiling. "You've got to be a runner." He stated. She simply laughed and nodded. They continued on their way to school and left the silent forest behind them, along with the watchful pair of eyes.

Once they arrived at school, the two spilt their separate ways, and headed to their first classes of the day. Ari walked into class dreading the final that she would have to take, but she really wanted to talk to Ally more than anything. Ally was the only person besides Lynn who knew what she was. Ally had found out by accident, but luckily she took it upon herself to keep her friends secret from everyone else. She dropped her stuff off at her desk and walked up to her best friend.

"So, you told him my favorite drink eh?" she said with a smile. "Heck yes! He was hot. That's quite a catch you have there." Ally laughed, "How'd you meet him?" she asked. Ari blushed, rather embarrassed, "Well, I kinda…ran into him. Literally. I was walking down the hall and not looking where I was going, and I ran straight into him. Then I was at the park and he showed up and we started talking…what?" Ari said catching her friends disbelieving look. "You…ran into him?" Ally said slowly, and then started laughing, "Gods, how clumsy can you be?" she asked, teasing Ari. Ari just laughed, "I know, i know, grace is not my middle name." She said between giggles. The girls talked a bit more before the bell rang and the last day of finals began.

Later

Sighing Ari clipped her lock back on her locker and threw the last of her books in it. 'Man I'm glad that I don't need to carry those around for a while!' she thought with a smile.

"Hey there." Said a warm deep voice behind her. Turning, she smiled when she saw who it was. "Hey there yourself. What's up?" she asked. "Hmm nothing much, just wondering if you were still up for hanging out today." James replied. Ari laughed and nodded "Of course." "Then shall we go?" he asked her, taking her arm and steering her out the doors of the school. "Where are we going?" Ari asked, now curious. James refused to answer, only smiling and shaking his head to her questions, saying it was a surprise.

He led her to an area in the park that she had never been. She gasped when she saw it. It was breathtaking. A large lake surrounded by flowers, with an island in the middle of the crystal clear water, connected by a bridge covered in flower metalwork. "It's…amazing!" she breathed. He only smiled and nodded "I thought you might like it." As she gazed around the area, a feeling of nostalgia enveloped her. 'Why does this feel so…familiar to me?' she wondered.

She began to walk towards the water and slipped off her sandals as she reached the edge. Stepping into the water, she felt like she was walking into a dream. James watched her curiously. 'It's almost like she's being drawn to the lake…' he thought as he followed her path into the water. He paused to untie his shoes and roll up his jeans so they wouldn't get too wet. Grinning, he waded out to where the girl stood. He stood next to her and watched the birds play in the trees on the island. Still smiling, Ari shook her head gently and trailed one hand in the water. An idea came to her, and she grinned. Spinning to face James, she trailed a cupped hand in the water, and as he turned to face her- startled by the sudden motion- she splashed him. Laughing, she waded back towards shore, as he sputtered, wiping the water from his face.

"Hey!" he yelled at her, wading back towards the shore that she almost had reached. He quickly caught up with her. 'So you want to play a water game eh?' he thought with a smirk. As Ari got within 10 feet of the shore, she felt two arms pick her up. "Gotcha." James whispered in her ear. "How about a bit of payback now for that splash?" he asked her. "Hey now! Let's not do anything too rash!" she cried out, laughing as he carried her into the waist deep water.

Laughing the swimmer replied, "This'll get me as soaked as you, so we can be even." With that, James let himself fall back into the warm water, taking the struggling girl with him. Seconds later he surfaced about ten feet from where the dunking had happened. The water was deeper here so he was able to float freely. Glancing around him he looked for her. 'Where is she? Crap! What if she couldn't swim?' he worried.

As he glanced around, he failed to notice a ripple behind him until it was too late. Water suddenly splashed the back of his head, and as he turned to look, another one hit him in the face. Wiping the water from his eyes, he heard her laughing, and then "Gotcha." whispered into his ear from behind. He shook his head, and water flicked off of his short hair and landed back in the lake. He turned and saw her smiling at him. "You really had me worried for a minute. I didn't know if you were okay." He told her.

Ari smiled and shook her head, "I've known how to swim since I was two." She told him. She flipped on her back and gazed up at the sky. "It really is perfect here, you know that? Like a corner of…paradise…" she trailed off. He turned to float on his back next to her, and after a few moments of her silence, he reached out and squeezed her hand. He smiled when he felt her; gently this time, squeeze back. The two floated like that, hand and hand for a while until she flipped off her back and swam towards shore with him following in suit. She wrung out her hair so it could dry better and he shook his head spraying her with water droplets. "Hey now." she said smiling. She lay down on one of the larger rocks that was in the sun and lay there, drying off. James smiled and simply stripped off his shirt and laid it out to dry. He lay down on the rock next to her, and she cracked open one closed eye, smiled and went back to dozing.

The oracle watched from nearby the interaction between the two teenagers. Soon, very soon, she would be able to carry out her plan, and help Lord Darcia achieve his dreams.

A/N: Read and Review please!


	10. Questions Questions

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the WR characters sadly…the only ones that are in this story that I own are the ones that I made up, so yep. That about covers it. Onto the story 

With a small whine at the bright light that shocked his eyes, Kiba raised his head to look at his surroundings.

'Where am I?' he wondered. The room that he was held in looked like any other ordinary medical room, with sterile white walls and the familiar smell of bleach, but something about the room made him feel uneasy. For one, his bed was basically surrounded by a cage, and second, he was strapped down to his bed. His golden eyes flickered over towards the reinforced steel door as his ears caught the sound of footsteps approaching his room.

"Ah. You're awake. It's about time, we were wondering if we would have to wake you up ourselves." Said a man in white, who Kiba assumed to be some kind of a doctor, as he entered the room and locked the door behind him. The man paused at the cell door to enter a key code to open the door, and then stepped into the cell containing the wolf.

"My name is Dr. Higashi, not that you need to know that. I simply thought that you would feel more at ease knowing my name, seeing as I know yours Kiba." The man said as he reached for a syringe which lay out on a table nearby.

"Well Doctor, mind telling me why Darcia and his men are so focused on my pack and I? And why are we here? Who exactly is this other wolf that you're waiting for?" Kiba asked the man as he approached with the needle in hand. "And I hope you don't think that you are going to stick that in me." He stated with a slight snarl, a warning growl forming in his throat.

"So many questions. How like the young pup you are." The doctor answered with a smile, as he fiddled with some of the nearby machines. "Very well, I suppose that you deserve a few answers," He continued, "You are needed to open the path to Lord Darcia's paradise. You and one other wolf are the key. Who this wolf is, I am not at liberty to say, but you know this wolf well, or you did at one time. You and your pack are being held here until this wolf enters the city and we are able to capture it. Until then, we are taking the opportunity to study you, your particular kind is quite unusual, and we noticed that you heal at an amazing speed. We may be testing the limits of your healing abilities if you do not comply with us."

With that Dr. Hagashi turned to the Iv drip that was connected to Kiba's arm, and began to insert the needle he had in his hand into it, adding the contents into the infusion.

Kiba's eyes went wide in anger, "What do you think you're doing? What is that?" he snarled as he strained in vain against the bindings on his wrists, ankles and throat. Kiba felt his hackles begin to rise as he felt a hand stroke his head, much like Cheza's had done not long ago. How dare this man, this human ,touch him in such a way? How dare he touch him at all! Still snarling, he felt his eyes began to close, a drugged sleep began to pull him under into the darkness, and as he drifted he heard the doctor softly say to him-

"Now, now. No need to get upset, you'll only end up hurting yourself. This is just a little…precaution… to ensure your cooperation." The voice above his said in a soft voice, still stroking the snarling wolfs head.

Dr. Higashi watched the wolf drift into unconsciousness from the mixture of drugs coursing through his veins. Giving the now sleeping wolfs head one final stroke; he turned to leave the room. As he sealed the door behind him, he paused. "We just need to know everything you can tell us about your little sister Ari, and her abilities, and why our hunters and oracle haven't been able to capture her yet. And one way or another, you'll tell us." He said stepping out the door and relocking the reinforced door behind him. That done, he nodded to the men waiting outside the room. "He's been given a mild sedative that will have him out for roughly two hours. That should give you plenty of time to prepare the questioning rooms." He said to the waiting men.

"Right sir." The men said with a unison nod. "We'll take care of it, no problem."

"I knew I could count on you three. Get the information we need. I'll be on call if any trouble crops up." Dr. Higashi said. With that, he turned on his heel and continued down the corridor. The three men continued on their way and headed towards the indicated rooms and began the preparations.

Back in Ari's world

Stretching, Ari rolled over and hit the snooze alarm on her radio. 'Why'd I even set it? This week's Spring Break.' She wondered. It had been almost a week since James had taken her to that beautiful place, and remembering that day made her smile. 'That really was a perfect day.' She thought to herself. 'Now why'd I set that alarm…'

"Ahh! That's why! Crap, if I don't hurry, I'm going to be late!" Ari nearly yelled, startling the sleeping kitten on her stomach. "Sorry Kira, I've got to get going!" she said, pushing the sleepy animal off of her.

Ari swung her feet out of her bed, and went to stand and take a step, only to fall when she realized one of her legs was still asleep and collapsed under her. "Owww…that really hurt" Ari groaned as she rubbed the shin she had hit on her nightstand. 'Oh well, clumsy me…' she thought with a smile, and holding the wall for support, she made her way to the bathroom for a shower.

As steam filled the room, and she stepped under the warm water, Ari reviewed what had all happened that week. Break had started off with James taking her to that pool with the island, that little slice of paradise, and every day since then, James, John and her had spent together, traveling their town and the towns nearby. She smiled as she reflected on the events that had happened. 'I really love spending time with those two, it's cute how they compete with each other, although what they are competing over, I'm not sure…' she thought to herself as she stepped out of the shower and began to dry off.

Her mother had left five days ago, leaving her in charge of the kitten, Chase, her horse that her parents had bought her six years ago, her mothers' horse Rain, and the house, telling her that she would be back as soon as she could, and that she'd call and have people stop in a say hi every now and then.

Tying her wet hair in a simple French braid, Ari headed out to the kitchen to grab some food before she went back outside to feed Chase. As she waited for her bread to finish toasting, she glanced at her watch. 6:15 am. 'I should still have a little bit of time before the twins get here.' she thought to herself. She grabbed her bread from the toaster and spread some peanut butter on it and perched herself on the counter, munching contently on her breakfast.

As she was washing her dishes, her ears picked up the sound of footsteps nearing the pathway near her house. Frowning, she glanced at the clock that was on the wall next to her. '6:25, they shouldn't be here just yet, should they?' she thought to herself as she dried her hands. A knock sounded at the front door as she approached it calmly, while inside, she was already planning what she would do if it wasn't a friendly face. She glanced through the peephole in the door and breathed out a soft sigh. Apparently, they were early today.

Ari flipped the lock and opened the door, smiling at the two boys on her porch. "Good morning. You guys are early, what's the deal?" she said, as she motioned for them to come in, raising an eyebrow as James covered his mouth as he yawned.

"John's not allowed to set alarms anymore, that's the deal." James stated as he walked through the door, glaring at John.

"Hey man, how was I supposed to know? That 5 really looked like a 6 to me." John replied with a shrug. He turned to Ari "I accidentally set our alarm for 5 am instead of 6 am, and then we couldn't shut it off, so I had to unplug it, but by that time, we were both already fully awake." He told her with a shrug "My bad."

Ari just laughed and shook her head. "Nice one John. Remind me to never let you set an alarm for anything." She said as she watched the two glare at each other. "Hey, I'll be right back, I've got to go outside for a minute and catch Chase and feed him. Don't break anything while I'm gone." she said with a smile as she pulled on a pair of her moms' old boots and a jacket.

"How about some company?" James asked her with a smile. "You never told me that you had any outdoor animals, what is he?" he ask curiously. Ari just smiled. "Come and see. He's a real beauty, that's for sure." She said smiling. "You two behave, I think I'll sleep for a few minutes." John said with a yawn as the two headed outside.

As the walked on the path towards the pasture, James kept asking her what Chase was, but Ari only smiled. "He's my big baby." She said with a grin, and then laughed at James as he raised an eyebrow at her wording. "Really now." He replied. Ari smiled at him as the stable came into view.

She unlatched the stable door and walked inside the dark stable. She flipped on the lights as she walked towards the small tack room that held the food and all the other equipment. James followed her a bit more slowly, taking the time to glance around the area. Ari grabbed a halter and a lead rope and walked back out of the tack room and hooked James arm as she wandered back out the main door.

"Where are we headed now?" James asked her with a tilt of his head. Ari looked at him and motioned up ahead with a free hand towards a now visible pasture. "We're almost there." She said with a grin "And then you can meet Chase."

As the two neared the pasture gate, Ari whistled softly, causing James to give her a curious glance. Ari's ears quickly picked up the sound of hoofbeats, and soon, the source came into view. She quickly unlatched the gate and slipped inside. "Wait here. I'll be right back," she said to James. He watched as a powerful looking horse loped up to the teen.

Ari readied herself as Chase neared, and with good reason. As he approached, he lowered his head, and without breaking stride he swung past her, nearly bumping her with his head. Eyes narrowing, Ari watched to see what he would do next. Chase slowly made a circle back towards her and loped back her way. She flipped the tack over her shoulder so it wouldn't get in her way, and as the large horse neared again, she stood, waiting. He snorted at her 'Catch me if you will' and dipped his head as he passed, this time within grabbing distance. Ari reached out as he passed and grabbed a handful of the long mane that swung her way and let his momentum swing her onto his back. She landed gently onto his back, and nudging him, guided him back towards the gate and James.

"So, what do you think?" Ari asked him with a smile as she sat on Chase's back.

"I think that you scared the crap out of me." James stated, watching the raven-haired girl perched on the tall horse. "Oh no no, Chase would never hurt me, at least not intentionally. The majority of that was just his morning game. He hates to go back in so he always makes me catch him somehow." Ari replied with a laugh.

As Ari slid off the horses back, James studied him. He was a magnificent animal without a doubt. Muscles rippled under a burnished copper coat, and his tail and mane hung long and silky. His eyes were a warm cinnamon brown and seemed to be filled with a sense of wisdom. Smiling to himself, James turned his attention to the owner of the animal. He had to admit; she was pretty well matched to her horse. Both had a sense of strength and wisdom to them, and both were stunning to look at.

Ari turned around and saw James studying her and blushed. Chase nudged her from behind 'He likes you, even I can tell that, and I just now saw him' he told her as he breathed into Ari's hair. "Now you hush. You can't know that." She whispered back to him. He just snorted at her in response and shook his head. Still blushing slightly, she walked Chase towards James and he opened the gate for her and Chase so they could walk through.

"He's a pretty nice looking horse, I'll say that much. Obviously strong though too." James said to her. "Yeah. I usually ride him for about an hour a day or so, so he stays in pretty good shape." Ari responded. Chase nudged her from behind 'Come on. I'll give you both a lift.' he told her as he watched the two teens. 'You sure?' Ari thought back towards him. Chase bobbed his head, and she grinned.

"You ever ridden a horse before?" she asked James with a grin. When he shook his head, she laughed. "Come on. He can carry both of us no problem." James glanced at Chase and shrugged. "Sure. If he won't mind." Ari shook her head and turned. She pushed Chase's chest gently and stopped him. Turning to his side, she tapped his neck gently. He inclined his head back towards her 'Grab my mane and pull yourself up.' he told her. "Gimmie a second" she muttered.

Ari turned back to James. "Okay, so wrap your left hand in his mane, get a good grip and I'll boost you up." She told him as she twined her hands together into a step. James nodded and did as she said, wrapping his hand in the long hair. "Put your right hand on his back and then step with your left foot onto my hands. Its okay really." She said as he cast her a worried look. Once he placed his foot on her hands, "I'll push you, just lift yourself up" she told him. James bent his legs and bounced slightly, and swung easily onto Chase's back as Ari pushed him up.

"There. Not so hard huh?" she told James with a smile. He smiled back at her and then frowned "How are you going to get up here?" he asked her. Ari smiled, "Easy. Like this." With that she turned, walked back five steps, turned around, took three running steps towards him, one small jump and then smoothly reached out and twisted her left hand in Chase's mane, placed her other behind James, and vaulted on the last step swinging smoothly onto Chase's back. She smiled at James as he twisted around to look at her; surprise etched in his face. "What?" she asked him. James simply shook his head, "Nothing." Shrugging, Ari reached around James' other side and twisted her free hand in the thick mane. Tapping her heels to his side, Chase moved forward smoothly.

As the duo neared the stables, they saw John waiting for them. "Jeez, take long enough?" he asked them with a mischievous grin. "You two look pretty nice up there." he said, still smiling. He walked to the main door and opened it for them, and once they were all through, Ari slid off Chase's back with James following soon after. Ari quickly fed Chase and Rain and let them into the main pasture. "Alright, lets head out!" John said with a huge grin.

By this time, it was 7 am. Two of the people in the group had only thirteen hours left in their world.

A/N: I know, kinda long and rambling, but hopefully, this will all play a point later on. You'll have to wait and see. Read and Review please 


	11. Under the blood red moon

Disclaimer: The only characters that I own are Ari, John, and James, and whatever other various ones that I create.

A/N- Thanks Tamar and katana777 for your reviews! I love hearing from you guys about the things you like about my story, so keep it up please! Oh, and if you haven't guessed by now, this will probably end up being a rather long fic, so please, keep reading!

After leaving the house, the trio set out towards the park and the pool where James had taken Ari the week before. To get there, they had to pass through the woods however, and Ari had never dreaded it so much. The silence was still oppressing as ever, and no sounds besides the footfalls of the three humans were heard. It was as though the forest was entirely void of life. Ari had her senses on high alert, certain that something dangerous was going to happen, and soon. The hair on the back of her neck was standing up, and she allowed the wolf to enter her mind and lend her abilities of detection but even she couldn't find anything. The wolf let out a small whine of frustration at this and warned her other half to avoid the area from now on.

The two boys glanced at each other, and then at the girl walking silently between them. Something had to lighten the mood until they were out of the woods, but what? Grinning, John caught his twins eye and mouthed "Lets carry her out of here" at James. He nodded back with a grin. John counted "1...2..3..!" and on three, the boys each slipped an arm under Ari's legs, one around her back, and flipped her arms around their necks.

"Hey!!" Ari laughed, "What's this all about?!" she asked giggling. The boys just smiled at each other, laughed, and carried her down the path out of the woods. Once they were free of the dead silence that pervaded the woods, the two set Ari down laughing, "Sorry, its just that you looked so serious, we wanted to lighten the mood is all." They told her.

Ari laughed and then surprised both boys by suddenly wrapping her arms around them and hugging them. "You two are amazing." She stated, laughing at the surprise on their faces. "Come on, let's hurry and get to the park." James said smiling.

Within five minutes the group had reached the park where they split off into separate directions to go buy picnic supplies. John had food, James had drinks, and Ari had the plates, forks, ect. to get.

As she browsed the shelves for plates and other miscellaneous items, she spotted a first aid kit. 'Would be a good idea to have in case someone ended up getting injured or something' she thought to herself, adding it to her basket. She quickly found the rest of her items, paid for them, and met the boys back in the park. "Everyone got everything?" she asked. Both boys nodded and they set off in the direction of the pool.

Once they reached the pool, they laid everything in the shade of a willow tree on a large flat rock. It was around 10 am, so all they decided to go for a swim in the warm waters. Stripping down to the swimsuits they all wore under their clothes, they made a pile where it would stay dry and headed into the water.

Laughing, the three of them ran into the warm water and then dove into it. The two boys raced each other a lap around the pool, as Ari swam over to the island and stepped onto a sun-warmed rock in the shallows to watch. "I so beat you John!" James laughed as he swam towards the shallows. John just grinned and shook his head "I'll let you have that victory, I won't go easy on you next time" he replied. James just laughed at this "Whatever bro" he said with a shake of his head. He glanced over at Ari, and was speechless for a moment. She was wearing a white swimsuit, which complimented her tan skin, black, silver-tipped hair, and blue eyes perfectly. Her hair was soaked from her swim, and one lone tendril clung to her throat as she looked up at a hawk flying overhead. He was broken free from his thoughts by a nudge in his side.

"It isn't polite to stare you know James" John whispered to him, "But I have to say, amazing taste man. Honestly." John told him. James nodded back at this, "Thanks" he told John with a slight smile.

"Hey! Are you two done already?" Ari asked them curiously. The two laughed at her question, "Nope. Never." They replied with a grin. John waded over to Ari and splashed her with a wave of water. A water fight soon broke out between the group and lasted for almost a full hour. Laughing, the three teens dragged themselves to the shore and lay on the dense green grass to dry off. Ari lay between the two twins, John on her left and James on her right. Ari reached out and found both boys hands and gently squeezed them in her own. She simply smiled at the two's questioning looks and shook her head. Ari and John laughed as James' stomach rumbled and he shook his head and began laughing as well. "Let's eat." he said grinning.

They ate their lunch at around 2:30 that afternoon. Ari quietly ate her sandwich and gazed out over the pool. The island looked like it could be interesting to explore, so she made up her mind to do that when she finished eating. John cast a sidelong look at his brother and their new friend 'Funny how this all started with her knocking us down that one morning' he thought with a smile 'And funny how he's the one chasing her actively instead of me'.

Once the she had finished her sandwich, Ari, now fully dried, put her regular clothes back over her swimsuit. She pulled her jacket on and began walking towards the metal bridge that spanned over the water.

"Hey, where are you headed off to?" John called out as she stepped onto the bridge. Nodding her head in the direction of the island, "I thought it would be interesting to explore and see what's all on it, if anything." She remarked, pausing, as the two boys stood up to follow her. "Well, why not explore it with us?" John said with a grin, "It could be fun."

They walked over the bridge, and as they reached the other side, Ari noticed that same unsettling feeling of being watched by something. 'Whatever. I'm just making mountains out of molehills is all, there's nothing to worry about I'm sure.' She thought to herself, when a shrill cry from overhead sounded. Startled, her eyes snapped towards the sky, picking out the source of the sound. "Is that the same one from earlier?" James asked as he watched the hawk swoop in lazy circles overhead. Ari nodded as she watched it, thinking to herself of the odds of the same hawk on its own remaining in the area around humans, and decided that it was a little odd, but who was she to question him?

The bird called out another time, and this time, Ari was able to make out what it was saying. 'Danger is near' he called to the black wolf and her human companions below him. Her world narrowed to the hawk and herself. 'What kind of danger?' she asked the bird, as he circled overhead. He simply called out the same thing, over and over, circling above them, searching for something. He dropped suddenly from the sky as she asked him one final time, striking a small sparrow that had flown too close, and landed on a nearby limb. Upon closer observation, she realized he wasn't just a plain red hawk. His feathers were tipped in a mix of black, tan and silver, and the feathers themselves were glossy and sleek. Eyeing her with one brilliant gold flecked iris, he tore into the unfortunate bird and answered 'Everywhere. It's all around you, waiting to swallow you whole. All you have to do is listen to hear it coming.'

Ari's eyes widened at this, and straining her hearing for any odd sounds, tensed when she realized that aside from the sounds her companions and her were making, there wasn't a sound to be heard. Again, as in the forest, there was simply nothing to be heard. Turning back to face the hawk, who perched, watching her, she asked him 'When? And what?' The hawk simply cocked his head at her, thinking. He straightened and took off, winging high into the sky, circled once. 'If, when the time comes, you need help, simply call my name, I'll answer.' He called as he flew off into the distance.

"Are you alright?" James asked her, shaking her shoulder gently. Ari met his worried eyes with hers and nodded, "I'm fine, but when we get done here, we should probably head back towards home. It's getting late." She responded.

James' POV-

As I watched her studying that bird, I noticed something odd. It seems crazy, but it almost seemed like she could understand it. Her eyes, I swear changed too. One second they were blue as ever, and the next they had flecks of gold in them, and the longer she stood there, the more they changed. Or so it seemed. Something's…different…about her, but I can't quite put my finger on it. Even still, she intrigues me. I mean, she can go from being cheerful and laughing one minute, and silent and analyzing the next. Almost like…a predator would be when listening for danger, or deciding what move to make next. Something tells me she's stronger than she appears, and that she has some dark secrets about her. She just has that kind of an aura about her. Even John noticed the change in her mood when that bird landed in the tree. He glanced at me with that questioning look in his eyes, and for once, me, the know it all, had no answers. 'What happened to her, and what is she exactly?' I wondered, as I reached out and touched her shoulder and asked her if she was alright. When she looked at me, those gold flecks were gone and her eyes were back to being their regular blue color. How odd…

"Yeah, no problem. Lets see what secrets this island has, if any." John told her with his regular devil-may-care grin. Ari smiled back at him, nodded, and set out ahead of the two. John glanced at James, and saw him watching her with a frown. "Hey man, relax. She's fine. I'm sure, now come on." He told his worrying twin, pushing him forward, "Now, move it." He told him with a final shove.

They spent over two hours exploring the island. It was larger than it appeared that was for sure. There were even some old ruins there, and the three of them speculated for over half an hour who or what had built it, and when. Once they were all tired of exploring, they headed back towards the bridge and gathered the things that they had brought with them. As James packed the last things into the bag they had brought, he looked towards John when he heard him whistling and raised an eyebrow. John just looked at him, smiled, and jerked his head in the direction of the water. Ari was standing there, looking out over the water at the island. The water, reflecting the suns last rays before it began to set, sparkled. It illuminated the teen, almost making her seem unearthly.

When James and John stood next to her, she simply smiled and continued looking at the fading sun. Both boys reached out and captured one of her free hands with one of theirs, and they stood like that, hand in hand for a while. James glanced down to the water at their feet, and when he saw their reflection, he stepped back in surprise. "What the…" he breathed softly. What he saw had been there for only the briefest amount of time, but he was sure of what he had seen. In the reflection he had seen John and himself, but in between them, instead of the girl that he knew stood there, was a large black wolf with silver shading through its fur. John looked at his twin, concern mixed with confusion etched in his features. "What's up?" he asked him. James just shook his head, "Nothing, I'll tell you later maybe."

A short while later, the trio headed back towards Ari's house, once again passing through the silent forest as quickly as possible. They arrived back at Ari's house without any real issues, other than the woods being slightly darker than one would have expected, and as the silence as was now common in it. James glanced at the clock as they walked in the door '6 pm wow, today went by pretty fast…and what an interesting day it was…' he thought to himself. Placing the bag carefully on the kitchen table, John began to unpack it. As he emptied the contents, he frowned in confusion. Turning to his twin and Ari, "Hey, did you see me put my jacket back in here before we left?" he asked them. When the two shrugged, John sighed heavily. "Well, then that means that I left it there, there's nowhere else it could be", he stated, staring into the now empty bag.

"You are not going back there to get it _now_ are you?" Ari asked him, fixing him with a disbelieving stare. John nodded, "I have to, I'm going to need it tomorrow." He told her. Ari sighed, "We'll all go back and get it," seeing John begin to protest, she shook her head, "Something was wrong there earlier today, and I'm not letting you go back through the woods and there on your own." John turned to James, "You can't serious agree with her, can you? I can take care of myself you know." He said when James rolled his eyes. "You may be able to take care of yourself, but I agree with Ari, something was up today, and I don't think you should go there on your own in the dark." James told him. Shaking his head in disbelief, John sighed. "Fine. Then can we go and get it so you two stop worrying about me?" he asked. The other two nodded, and they began the trek back to the park.

Once they arrived there, John quickly found his jacket and they headed back towards home. As they began to leave the area, James suddenly stopped in his tracks, and looked at the sky, cocking his head with his brow furrowed in confusion. "Look at that moon. I've never seen one like it, and we weren't supposed to have one for another month…" he said. The other two stopped and looked at the full moon overhead.

Ari felt her breath catch in her throat when she saw it. It was almost a blood red orange color and hung low in the sky. It reminded her of the full moons back home that came with the blooming of the lunar flowers. She took a deep breath as she was swept away into a memory.

Flashback

She was running through a large field with Kiba. The two siblings were chasing one another and tumbling through the sweet smelling flowers that covered the area. The lunar flowers. Overhead, a reddish orange moon hung pregnant in the sky, bathing the white flowers and playful wolves in a pale orange color. A large wolf, with the same unusual markings that Ari would grow to have, loped up to the now exhausted pups and nudged them. It was their mother, Hana, one of the Alphas of their pack. "Come on you two, it's almost time for the pack to gather and celebrate the lunar flowers." She told them softly. Her eyes, so unlike a wolf's with their clear blue hue, crinkled with amusement as her two cubs groaned and clambered to their feet and began to follow her back to the pack circle.

Once the celebration ended and the last howl died away, Hana ushered the sleepy pups to bed. As they curled up next to her and drifted off to sleep, Hana quietly slipped away to meet with her mate, the Alpha male, Keiji. The two sat shoulder to shoulder for some time without speaking. In this time, the more curious of the two pups had awakened and silently slipped to the front of the den and watched her parents. "We can't just never tell them of their destiny Hana, and you have to teach Ari how to use her gifts sometime so she's prepared. We agreed, I would teach them how to defend themselves if you would teach her how to use her abilities. After all, they come from your side of the family, so you would know the best way to teach her." Keiji told his mate softly. Hana sighed, thinking. "I know, I just wish that there was some way that we could make their journey easier. It will be so hard for them, I can't bear to think of them suffering more than they must." She told her mate, worry etched in her features. 'What gifts? What journey can they mean?' Ari thought to herself as she listened to her parents talking. Eventually, she tired of listening to them, as the topic shifted to something less interesting, and returned to sleeping next to Kiba. Not long after, Hana returned to the den and curled around the two dozing pups. "I'll protect you for as long as I can I promise you" she told her pups softly, before she too drifted off to sleep.

End Flashback

Ari slowly came back from her memories as a hand shook her shoulder softly and said her name. Groaning, she opened her eyes and sat up. "What happened? How'd I end up on the ground?" Ari asked the twin who had called her back from her memory. "We were all looking at the moon, and the next thing John and I knew is that you were falling." James told her, searching her face for anything to reassure him that she was alright. Ari squeezed her eyes shut briefly and reopened them, focusing on the face that was near hers. John kneeled next to her on her other side, frowning. "Are you alright?" he asked her. When she nodded, he leaned back onto his heels and stood, putting his hands in his pockets and turning to face the water and the island.

James raised a hand to her face, and gently wiped her cheek with one finger. "You're crying, or you were." He noted quietly. Ari raised a hand to her face and wiped it, feeling the wetness on her face transfer to her hand. Shaking her head, "I don't know why I'm crying, when I fell, I just had a flashback to when I was a kid, nothing sad or anything." She told him, feeling more tears slip from her eyes. James smiled faintly and stood. Offering her a hand, he helped her up. "No worries." He said gently, pulling her into a hug. Ari tensed for a moment, and then relaxed, and, burying her face into his shoulder, she took a deep shuddering breath. He smelled safe, like soap and the outdoors. She closed her eyes and let herself relax into his embrace, smelling his calming and familiar scent. After a moment she stepped back with a smile "Thanks." She told him and he nodded back with a soft smile that was barely visible in the dim lighting.

Two members of the group had less than 20 minutes left in their world.

Read and review please and thank you!!!


	12. Captured

Disclaimer: I only own the characters that I created, no one else.

A/N: So track seasons starting up again, so my updates might not be as often as they are now, but I'll try my best to keep it up. Thanks katana777 for reviewing, I love to hear from you guys! And now, to the story!

Smiling faintly, Ari took hold of both boys' hands as they left the park and they began walking back towards home. On their way, they passed the time talking about anything and everything. As they approached the familiar dark woods ahead of them, all conversation slowly dissipated. The silence was as oppressive as ever once they were inside.

Ari shivered. "I wish there was a way that we could all get home without passing through here…" she muttered to herself. John's smile was lost in the darkness as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and hugged her to him. She leaned into his side, suddenly exhausted, and rested her head on his shoulder as they walked down the darkened path. James glared at his twin, and shot him a "what do you think you're doing" kind of look. John just ignored him and kept walking.

As James glared at his brother from behind, he suddenly felt like they were being watched. Pausing to listen, he strained his ears to hear anything that might ease his mind about these woods. "Hey. Ari, John, do you two hear anything odd?" he asked the two teens in front of him. The two turned and faced him, listening, for anything. Off in the distance, a dog barked a warning. Ari shook her head, "Nope, nothing." She told him, shaking her head. James frowned, "I swear I heard something…" he muttered.

Right then, a cracking sound came from behind the trio. Ari spun to face whatever it was, only to be hit with such force that she flew backwards several feet. Landing dazed in a heap, Ari struggled back up to her feet with a groan. Eyes darting around the area, she searched for what had hit her. One of the twins let out a gasp, and a small cry of pain, accompanied by a thud, came from the other. Ari turned to see what had happened. Both were held, judging by the scent, by humans dressed in all black. One held a wicked looking dagger to James' throat, and the other had a hand tangled in Johns' short hair and had twisted one of his arms behind his back, so his hand was pinned up near his neck. His feet had been knocked out from under him, and blood was beginning to show through the knees in his jeans, as the sharp stones underfoot cut through them.

Ari tensed, ready to leap and attack the two men, her mind already calculating how she would avoid harming John and James and still kill the other two, without revealing what she was. "Don't even think about moving," said the man holding James, "We won't hesitate in killing either one of them." He informed her, pressing the dagger harder into James throat, as she took a small step forward. James took a breath of air in with a slight hiss, and his warm brown eyes filled with a mixture of pain and fear. Blood began to trickle down his throat in small red streams, as the man pressed his weapon further through the skin.

"Why?" John asked his captor through gritted teeth. The man jerked the teen's head back and yanked his arm up higher, and John let out a strangled cry of pain as he felt his shoulder begin to move from the socket. "That's none of your business boy" the man said to him with a smirk, "You're just insurance." He told the pained twin that he held. That said, the man nodded to his accomplice "Open the gate" he told him. The other man in black gave him a curt nod, and pressed the center of the necklace he wore around his neck. It flashed violet once, and a portal opened behind the two.

"And just where do you think you're going with them?" Ari asked, her voice coloring with the threat of a growl, as the wolf began to take control. Ari shook her head, reining in the angry wolf, 'I know, I don't like the situation any more than you do, but if we don't cooperate with them, those two'll end up hurt even worse, and I can't allow that.' She told her as she pushed her other half back. The wolf retreated, but watched warily from behind her eyes.

"We're going back to our world, one that should be familiar to you." The man holding John told her. "If you wish to save these two from an untimely death, I'm sure that you'll find a way to get there and save them." The other told her with a sardonic smile. "Get up." John's captor said, dragging the teen to his feet by his hair and a firm hold on his arm. Ari saw his jaw clench as a fresh wave of pain, this time accompanied by nausea, came over him. He gagged as he fell to his feet, unable to stand, only to be jerked upright again. "Stop it, you're hurting him!" Ari cried as she saw John's face blanch white. James struggled in vain against his captor, who only pushed the knife harder against his throat. The small red streams quickly thickened and became wider, as the knife sliced deeper into his neck. Ari saw him clench his jaw in pain to keep from crying out, and she felt her control over her wolf begin to slip. She wanted blood from the two men, and she wanted it now. Ari pushed her back forcefully, and the wolf snarled a rebuke at her in frustration.

"We'd better leave. We're behind schedule, and we can't count on her holding herself back with all the blood that we're spilling from these two." The man holding James told his partner. The other nodded, and they dragged the two boys backwards through the portal. Once through, the gateway began to seal itself. "No!" Ari yelled as she flung herself towards the rapidly sealing opening. In her rush to reach the portal, she failed to notice one of the men pull out a throwing star. As she neared the opening, he flicked it at her, and it caught her dead in the stomach. Ari fell to her knees with a gasp, holding one hand to her wound as blood began to flow heavily from it. "Ari!" one of the twins yelled as he saw the wounded girl collapse, as the drug coating the star entered her bloodstream, and the portal closed and the two were separated from her.

Back on Ari's home world

"Let me go!" James said through gritted teeth, as he struggled to free himself from his captor's iron grip. The man reached into his belt and removed a thick black cord, which he then tied tightly around James wrists. Looking over, he saw that his partner was doing the same with his captive. Simultaneously, the men released their captives, who were now held by cords instead of weapons. At the end of each cord was a strong loop, much like one would see on a dog leash. The two men began walking through the woods that surrounded them, dragging the two struggling boys behind them.

John heaved a sigh of relief as the man released his arm, and, and wincing as he moved it to a more comfortable position, he moved to kneel next to James and make sure he was okay. The cords around his wrists tightened, jerking him off of his intended course, and he felt himself being dragged behind the two men who had snatched them from their world.

The men pulled them at a relentless pace, and finally, when they became annoyed at having to drag the two, they simply went back to them and threw them over their shoulders and kept moving. 'Damn my throat hurts' James thought to himself, raising his bound hands to his throat. When he looked at them, after touching the wound, he had to suppress a gag. His hands were covered in his blood. He took three shaky breaths, and passed out, arms going limp, his blood dripping from his hands.

John looked over at his twin in time to see him gag and go limp. His eyes widened as he saw the white shirt that James was wearing staining dark red, and noticed the thick coppery scent in the air, and then the rivulets of blood that had begun to tickle down his twins' face. "Hey, he's hurt! Are you just going to let him bleed to death?" John yelled at the man carrying him. The man glanced at the boy draped over his partners shoulder and sighed. "Shit man, you shoulda gone way easier on the whole knife to the throat deal. We've got to get to the van and quick." He told the man holding James. With that, the two set off at a lope, crossing a little less than a mile before coming to a clearing where a military like vehicle was waiting.

"Oracle." The man holding the unconscious James said, moving the boy so he was cradled in his arms as he nodded to Darcia's attendant. She looked at the boys, and nodded with a slight smirk, "They'll work perfectly. Get the unconscious one in the van, we'll patch him up." She told the man. He carried James towards the vehicle and passed the teen through the doors to the men inside. As he was transferred from one man to the man waiting in the van, James head rolled to the side, revealing the gash on his neck, and the thick trails of blood leading from the wound. The man in the van gave a low whistle, "We'll see what we can do." He said to the man holding James.

"What about this one?" the other man said, motioning to John. The woman spared the teen a quick glance and dismissed him with a wave of her hand, "Put him in the front, it doesn't matter." She said. "No way! I'm riding with James one way or another, I'm not going to let you hurt him more than you already have." John told her with a shake of his head, the last part directed at the other man who had held his brother. The woman simply waved her hand at him in a "fine, fine do what you want" manner. The man holding John sighed and shoved him purposefully in the shoulder that was injured, towards the van. He knocked on the door, "Another one for you." He told the attendant tonelessly. The man nodded and helped John inside.

As the door swing shut behind him, John swiftly made his way to James' side. His brother lay still and unconscious on the bench that was against the wall, his face pale and drawn tight with pain. The bandages around his throat were beginning to show a faint stain of red as blood soaked through them. John sighed and sat down next to him and rested his head on the bench next to James. He felt the van rumble to a start and begin to move. 'How did we end up here? What happened to Ari? Are we even in our world anymore, or somewhere else?' he wondered as he sat there.

Turning to the man wearing a white lab coat inside the back with him, "Will he be alright?" he asked. The doctor nodded, and smiled faintly. "He'll be fine. He just needs some time to recover." He told John. Then noticing the blood on John's knees and the way he winced when he moved his left arm, he frowned. "Looks like you need some medical help yourself," he told him, "Come here." John stood and moved to the bench the man had indicated and sat. The man shifted onto the floor, and pulling a medical kit towards him, began to roll up Johns' jeans to the knee so he could clean the cuts. Placing the last gauze strip in place, the doctor rolled John's jeans back down and closed the medical kit.

After putting it away, he turned back to John and fixed him with a stern look. "Now lets have a look at that shoulder. Take off your shirt." He told him. Once he had done so, the man motioned for him to move to the floor and sit. Kneeling behind John, the doctor began to push gently on John's back and shoulder. As the doctors' fingers neared the socket, John inhaled sharply as pain flared and his vision faded in and out. "I'll be blunt, this will hurt." The doctor said as he straightened Johns arm and placed a hand on his shoulder. John took a deep breath as the man jerked his arm hard, and he let out a small scream as he felt his shoulder and arm separate and disjoint from one another. In the next instant, the man pushed hard and popped Johns arm back into place. As the pain washed over him, John saw spots swim across his vision, and then everything went black.

John awoke what seemed like an eternity later. He was in a room, but upon closer inspection, it resembled more of a holding cell than anything. He was lying on a cot, and was covered by a warm blanket. Next to him, James was curled up in a ball, sleeping on a bed similar to his. John smiled and let out a small snort of laughter as his twin groaned and mumbled something in his sleep. Reaching out, he tugged the blanket that James had pushed away, and pulled it back over the sleeping boys' bare shoulders. 'They must have taken his shirt since it was all bloody from his neck.' John thought to himself, as he watched his brother sleep. John noted that the bandage had been replaced, 'How long was I asleep?' he wondered, as he curled back under the blanket and began to doze off again.

A/N: Review please and thank you!


	13. In the keep

He saw her fall, eyes widening at the sudden pain, mixing with the fury that already sparkled in her clear blue eyes

He saw her fall, eyes widening at the sudden pain, mixing with the fury that already sparkled in her clear blue eyes. He watched her as she fell, wanting to help, but being held back by two strong arms. He saw the blood begin to flow heavily from the wound in her stomach, and it quickly stained the hand pressed to the wound as well as her clothes and the ground around her. He felt the arms holding him tighten as the wounded girl fell heavily to her side with a thud and he strained, heedless of his own wounds, to free himself and get to her side. The opening between the two worlds rapidly began to close, and before they were separated, he heard her moan his name softly as she struggled to lift herself off the ground. And then, she was gone.

Sitting up with a gasp, James shivered at the sudden cold. He was covered in a thin layer of cold sweat and he realized that, upon looking down, he had no shirt on. Frowning slightly, he searched his brain as to why he would not have his shirt, when he remembered the blood from his neck. 'It must have gotten on my clothes' he thought to himself. He tried to remember what had all happened between the odd kidnapping and removal from everything that they had known and now. 'I remember the blood, there was so much of it, it coated my hands, and then everything went black.' He thought, looking at his hands and seeing the small traces of blood that still remained there. He raised a shaking hand to his throat, and sighed when he felt the thick bandaging there.

James turned his head when he heard a soft groan from next to him. John lay sprawled on a bed next to his; blanket kicked half off of the bed. John stirred, and slowly opened his eyes. When he saw that James was awake, he sat straight up with a grin lighting on his face. "You're awake! Last time I was awake, you were still out like a light." John told him. James glanced at him with worry in his eyes, "What do you think happened to Ari? Do you this she's okay?" he asked John. John just shook his head, frowned slightly, and sighed, "I saw her fall, but when I saw how badly you were hurt, I guess I forgot about her and was more worried about you. I'm sure she's fine," he told his twin.

Behind them, the door clicked open, and both boys turned to see who was entering the room. "My name is Dr. Higashi." The man told them as he strode briskly into the room. Both John and James watched him warily as he went to a nearby cabinet, and pulled out a syringe. Turning back to face the two, "I'm going to need one of you," he told them, tapping the needle, and walking towards James. In one fluid motion, James was out of his bed and had begun backing up to the wall. "No way am I letting you stick whatever that is into me. No way" he told the doctor, shaking his head as he walked backwards, tension showing in every muscle.

Sighing in exasperation, Dr. Higashi cleared the distance between James and him with surprising speed for a man of his size. He reached the startled teen in less than three steps and pinned him hard against the wall. As John stood to help his brother, the doctor swiftly pushed the needle into a vein in James' neck before John could even take a single step. With a soft groan, James slumped into the mans arms and began to slide down the wall.

"What did you do to him?" John demanded, fury lacing his tone. Dr. Higashi barely spared him a glance as he lifted the now drugged teen into his arms and turned towards the door, "It's of no concern to you" he told John dismissively, striding out the door. "BS it's of no concern to me!" John yelled moving to follow the man taking his brother. The door clicked shut behind the man, and as John reached it, he heard the double click of a lock sliding into place. He hit the door with a balled fist in anger and began to pace the room.

Over an hour later, the door clicked open again, and this time a man dressed in the same fashion as the ones who had taken them entered the room. Without saying a word, the man closed the distance between him and the teen who had turned mid-stride to face him. "What do you want? Where's James?" John demanded. The man ignored him, and instead easily pinned Johns arms together, despite the struggle that the angry teen gave him. The man shoved him ahead of him out of the room, and the two began the journey that took them deeper and deeper into the keep. Johns guide finally slowed enough to allow him to catch his breath, and they continued at a normal walking speed.

As they continued, the two passed a series of rooms with a large glass window in the front. Inside, John could see that they were obviously used for testing of some sort, but what exactly, he had no idea. Shouts rang out ahead and John found himself pinned against the wall by his guide. The man pushed his face in front of Johns', "If so much as move one inch from this spot, we'll kill your brother and make you watch" he told the youth in a deep throaty voice, "Got it?" John nodded, his brown eyes widening in horror at what the man had said. "Good. Don't move, or else." The man told him over his shoulder as he headed towards the source of the sounds.

As the man opened the door and entered the room, John's ears picked up the sound of an animal snarling and fighting. 'Are they holding a dog here? Why?' he wondered. The door swung back shut, but the screaming inside was still painfully audible. John was standing in such a spot that he could see into a small area of the room. What he could see was utter chaos. People in white lab coats, several bleeding from injuries, were running around trying to contain something. John saw a quick flash of white fur, ivory teeth and a golden eye, and then there was a piercing scream followed by a splatter of blood as a person thudded into the window and lay still.

The door flung open, and another man ran out. In his panic to leave, he had forgotten to shut the door again. He ran past John at a dead sprint and disappeared down the corridor. Seconds later, another form leapt out the open door. It was a large…dog, or so it seemed. Its magnificent white coat was speckled with flecks of red blood. John stood perfectly still as the animal ran towards him, a snarl stretched on its lips. The dog slowed its headlong run towards freedom as it approached him. It slid to a stop in front of him, mouth wide and panting, snarl fading from its lips, and those brilliant gold eyes filled with…surprise? Shock? John sucked in a breath of air as he realized that the animal in front of him wasn't a dog, it was a full-grown wolf. "Why do you smell like her? Ari, why do you smell like Ari?" the wolf asked him, confusion evident as he whined softly. Johns eyes widened in surprise. A man ran out of the room, and the white wolf spun around. Seeing the man, it cast one last bewildered look at John and ran down the hallway, followed by the man. 'Did that wolf just…talk to me?' John wondered as he watched the lithe form disappear down the narrow hall.

Moments later, John's guide returned to him. "You okay?" he asked the shocked teen. John nodded, still trying to process what he had heard the wolf say. The man sighed and began pushing him down the hall. "We've got to move, I don't want to be around when that beast gets back," he told John, shaking his head. After a short time of walking, the reached a heavily reinforced door. The man keyed in a code and it slide open smoothly. He pushed John ahead through the door, and they entered what looked like a jailing room. The cells had bars for doors and had a chain in the back attached to the wall. John tensed as they continued into the room, and the man shoved him forward towards a cell near the back. He held the youth in place as he keyed in a code and opened it. He pushed John through the now open cell door. John stumbled as he fell into the cell and onto the ground. "You are to wait here until you are needed" the man told him as he slammed the door shut. "Wait! What about James?" John asked, scrambling to his feet. The man simply shrugged and walked out of the room, leaving the teen on his own.


	14. Siblings

He saw her fall, eyes widening at the sudden pain, mixing with the fury that already sparkled in her clear blue eyes

'That boy…he smelled just like her. Why? Is she still alive after all this time? Where could she be? Who is he? He smelled human to me, but her scent was there for sure.' Kiba's thoughts raced as he flew down the corridor. He flicked an ear back to see if he could hear whether or not the man chasing him had given up. Kiba's ears caught the uneven pounding of feet on the tile, and the heavy gasping of the man as he struggled to catch up with the wolf. Kiba took a sharp turn down a narrow side corridor, only to find himself at a dead end, or was it? He noticed a barely visible door in the wall and, taking human form, he tugged the handle and opened the dark door.

Slipping silently inside, he closed the door behind him and sighed. Pausing to catch his breath, Kiba glanced around the room, taking stock of what was all there. He noticed immediately the thick scent of coppery blood hanging in the air. Feeling along the uneven wall, Kiba searched for a light switch. Upon finding it, he flipped it on. As the dim light flooded the room, Kiba's eyes flashed with surprise and anger. Tied in the corner was a teen of about his age. A thick chain attached to cuffs on his wrists and ankles held the boy, and around his throat was a thick leather collar tied to a separate chain that was set into the wall. Blood was pooled around the teen and had begun to dry. Blood still trickled from a wound on the boy's head and a multitude of other small wounds that covered his body.

Kiba knelt next to the unconscious teen, feeling the blood soaking into his jeans. He noted that the boy had short, spiked black hair, tan skin, and a fairly athletic body. 'How'd he let himself get caught like this? Surely he could have defended himself even a little.' Kiba thought to himself as he studied the boy. The boy's eyes fluttered weakly and he muttered something softly. Upon hearing what the boy had said, Kiba felt a shock go through his body. "Ari? What do you know about her?!" Kiba asked the teen as his eyes opened and tried to focus. Taking a deep breath, Kiba ignored the smell of blood, and searched for that same scent, the one that he knew he would never forget, the smell of lunar flowers and pine needles. Sure enough, it was faint but it was there.

The injured teen coughed weakly, and when he saw a person near him, he began to struggle to move away. Kiba laid a steadying hand on the panicked teens shoulder, holding him still, "Relax. It's okay, I won't hurt you, I promise." As the boy met his eyes, Kiba was struck by how similar he looked to the boy he had just seen. "They must be twins or something," he muttered to himself softly. Upon hearing this, the teens eyes widened, "Have you seen him, have you seen John? Is he alright?" he asked Kiba, fighting to sit upright. Kiba helped him sit up and leaned him against the wall. "Is that the name of the guy who looks just like you?" Kiba asked him. He nodded, "That's John. I'm his twin, James."

Kiba rested on his heels as he regarded James. In return, James looked at the man who had found him and studied him. The man, no, he was a teenager, close to James' age, had dark brown hair that was long and slightly shaggy, wore jeans, and a white tee shirt covered by a jacket. Looking into his eyes, James was startled by how similar they were to Ari's. "They're that same clear shade of blue, with the little flecks of gold mixed in, just like Ari's" he muttered to himself. Kiba eyed James with a mixture of apprehension and curiosity, "What does this girl, Ari, look like?" he asked the twin. James was silent for a moment. "She has mid length black hair that, at the tips, shades to a silver-white color. Her eyes are just like yours, same shade and everything. Why?" James asked Kiba with a faint smile. "Does she have a blue stone necklace that she always wears?" Kiba demanded. James thought for a moment and then nodded. Surprise had filled the other teens face, "So you're still alive after all this time…I can't believe that I never knew…" Kiba muttered to himself.

James looked at the other teen, confusion etched on his features, "Do you know her? How? Who are you?" he queried of the other boy. "I know her alright, that is if she's the same girl that I'm thinking she is. My name's Kiba, and Ari? Well, last time I checked, if this is the same Ari that we're talking about, she's my little sister." Kiba told James softly, looking at his hands that were resting on his knees. "My twin actually, she was born twenty minutes after me," he told James. "I didn't even know she was still alive, I thought that she died in that forest fire like I almost did that night. Like the rest of the pack. I thought that the hunters had caught her; I never found her trail or anything…or else I would have done anything to find her..." he continued, with a small choked laugh that sounded more like a soft sob.

James eyed Kiba with a new curiosity, 'They do look an awful lot alike' he thought to himself. "What happened? I knew her that she was adopted, but I never found out what happened to her real family. Are you really her brother? She never mentioned you," he told Kiba, this last bit said quietly. As Kiba opened his mouth to respond, the door behind the two flew open. A dark figure stepped into the room, radiating what felt like raw energy. James felt the hair on his neck prickle as the figure entered the room.

"Kiba," the figure in black said, in a deep, yet regal sounding voice. "Darcia" Kiba replied, a snarl that should have looked foolish on a human face, but instead looked like a furious animals', gracing his lips. As Darcia strode further into the room, Kiba stood to meet him. James winced as he struggled to stand, only to find that the chains weren't long enough to allow him to stand. Glancing at James with a cold pitiless stare, Darcia laughed mirthlessly. "You think you're injured now boy, you just wait. You'll tell us what we want soon enough." he told the teen, as blood dripped on the floor from his wounds. Kiba glared at Darcia as the noble turned to face him. "Who said you were to be let out of your cage?" The noble asked the wolf. "You have no power over me!" Kiba snarled, as he leapt towards the man.

Sidestepping quickly, the noble dodged the angry teen. Kiba spun to face him and crouched to attack again. Soon the two were engaged in a fight, Kiba attacking and Darcia blocking him with ease. As the furious teen attacked, James saw a flicker, one moment Kiba was there, the next, a large white wolf, and then back again. 'Just like with Ari that one time…' he thought to himself. Kiba leapt towards Darcia, and the man caught him by the throat and held him so his feet barely brushed the floor. Gasping, Kiba struggled, striking out with his hands and feet. A foot connected with the noble's stomach and four deep slashes appeared and began to bleed. 'How is that possible? How did he make those?' James wondered, surprised. The noble glanced down at the slashes and smirked, "Are you proud that you finally wounded me wolf?" he asked the choking teen. Kiba's lips lifted into a snarl, and Darcia drew his arm back and flung the teen roughly into the nearby wall. Kiba slammed into it with a heavy thud and a cry of pain, and lay still on the ground. His usually calm blue eyes opened and were filled with pain and anger, as around him, bits of plaster floated down. Darcia knelt next to him, and stroked the tangled hair with one hand, as he slide a hand around the angry wolfs' throat, pinning him to the ground, "Now, now Kiba, no need to be so upset." Seconds later, three armed men entered the room with chains. They tied the teen so that he couldn't move and dragged him from the room. Watching them, Darcia turned to a man waiting outside the door, "Take the other one and put him in a cell." The man nodded and moved towards James.

James tensed as the man approached, pressing against the wall. The man crouched next to him as he undid the cuffs that restricted James. He offered a hand to the teen as he stood, and James warily accepted it. Pulling him up, the man slung one of James' arms over his head and wrapped one of his own around the boy's waist to support him. James cast a final look at the proud teen that was now tied in chains as he had been, as he was taken from the room. The man who was supporting James, glanced at him from the corner of his eye, "Bet you're worried about your brother huh?" he asked him quietly. James nodded wearily, having decided that this man didn't mean him harm, "Where is he?" he asked, exhaustion filling his voice. The man smiled, "Don't worry, you'll see him in a few minutes." he told James as they traveled through the hallways.

They stopped at the same door that John's guide had, and the man keyed in the code to open it. The door slid open as silently as ever, and the two walked into the room. James looked at the cells as they passed them. Inside were people, and James felt his heart fill with pity. The majority were emaciated beyond belief and were obviously dying. As they neared the back of the room, they passed two cells, one containing a brown haired kid and a gray haired man; the other held an older woman. They watched silently as the two passed. "Here we are," the man said, stopping to key in the code to open one of the cell doors. He turned as the door opened, and passed with the exhausted teen through the door. The other occupant of the cell, who had been dozing, blearily opened his eyes as James was laid on the floor near him. James felt darkness wash over him as sleep took him at last, away from the pain he felt. The man nodded to John, who was in the cell with James, "Take care of him the best you can," he told John softly, as he sealed the door and left the room.

As the man's footsteps faded away, John's eyes focused on the form that lay next to him. As the figure focused, John sucked in a quick breath of air. His twin lay on the floor next to him, and there were dozens of small injuries covering his body. He tried his best to clean the wounds with strips of his own shirt soaked in the water that was provided in the cell. As he watched James sleep, John noticed several long white hairs that were clinging to his brother's short hair. Pulling one of them off, he looked at it carefully. "It looks like that wolf's hair…" he muttered to himself. John busied himself for the next several hours caring for James, and waiting for him to wake up.


	15. Returning Home

Ari whimpered softly in the drug-induced sleep that she rested in. She felt something whuffle a soft breath into her hair, and nudge her. Fighting past the sleep that tried to reclaim her, Ari forced her eyes open. Something soft brushed her face as her eyes began to focus. Watching her were two warm brown eyes that she had known for her whole life in this world. "Chase…" she mumbled softly, as he bent his head towards her, his long forelock brushing her cheek. "You're finally awake. I was getting worried you might not make it" he told her, worry reflected in his mahogany eyes. He tilted his head so she could catch his mane and pull herself up. Ari wrapped a hand in a fistful of the long warm hair that cascaded towards her, and Chase stepped backwards, lifting his head and her as he did so.

Ari leaned into his warm side. "Oh Chase…there was nothing I could do, they're gone, and I have no idea how to get them back. The man said I should know the way, and I think that they went back home, to my home, my real one, but I don't know how to get there." She told him quietly, tears spilling from her eyes, as she buried her face in his long mane. "Silly wolf. I told you to call me when you needed help, didn't I?" asked a voice from above her. She lifted her head and heard wing beats near her and then the hawk landed gently on Chase's back. "And how was I supposed to know that that was what you had meant? It isn't like you told me your name even." Ari told the hawk as she raised her arm for him to step onto.

The bird turned its head one way, then another, as it stepped gently onto her outstretched arm. "I didn't, did I." He told her, his gold eyes flicking away in embarrassment. Ari shook her head, a soft smile playing on her lips, "Nope." The hawk mewed a quiet sound, "Well then, my name is Kartal. I went and got your fine friend here and asked him to help me. You'll need all the help you can get." he told her. "Do you want to save those two boys enough to risk your life?" Kartal asked her seriously, looking into her blue eyes. Without hesitation, "Yes. I owe them that much at the very, very least." She told the bird. He bobbed his head at her reply, "Good. Then we'd better get moving. We don't have much time to spare." Kartal said as he flapped his wings and took to the air. Ari swung onto Chase's back, wincing slightly at the pain in her stomach, 'I might want to get this star out first though' she thought to herself, placing a hand over the wound.

Chase carried her back to the house, and to the stable. Once inside, she slid slowly off his back. Walking to the tack room, she stripped off her shirt. She paused long enough to grab the first aid kit that was lying out, and walked over to the full-length mirror on the far end of the wall. Ari carefully studied the wound as she wiped away the dried blood with a damp towel. She grabbed a large square of gauze and held it in one hand as she gripped the edge of the star in the other. Taking a deep breath, she pulled hard on the star and it came out easily. Wincing with pain, Ari pressed the gauze over the open wound and, placing the bloodied weapon aside, she quickly patched up the wound. "There. It'll heal quicker now that that's out." She said quietly. Looking behind herself in the mirror, she saw Kartal perched on a peg nearby. "Okay, what now?" she asked him. He gestured with a wing, and she followed him from the room, grabbing an athletic bag that was near her.

At her new friends direction, Ari quickly filled her bad with what she'd need. Kartal had her bring both clothes for her and for the boys, a first aid kit, extra guaze, hydrogen peroxide, some food and other things. Viewing the contents of the now full and neatly packed bag, the hawk bobbed his head in appreciation. "I think you're set. Shall we go?" he asked her, fixing her with his golden gaze. Ari nodded and then frowned, "But how do we get there?" she asked him. "Just follow me" he told her as he lifted from his perch. Ari slung the bag arounf her shoulders, leapt onto Chase's back and together, they followed the hawk.

"Are you sure you want to come?" Ari thought to Chase. He simply snorted, "If I wasn't sure, I wouldn't be here. Besides, I know that you care a lot about both of those boys" he stated. A ghost of a smile flickered across her face as the two rode on. The trio neared the park where Ari had been earlier that day, "Almost there," Kartal called from above them. Ari nodded, and they continued on under the blood red moon.

Kartal led them to the same pool that the water fight had occurred, and landed on a lmb over the orange tinted water. He regarded the black haired teen seriously. "Are you sure you want to do this? Last chance," he told her. Ari shook her head, "I can't let them be hurt because of me, I have to get them back." She told him firmly. Chase nudged her from behind, "Well, what are we waiting for?" he asked, his brown eyes twinkling.

Kartal led Ari and Chase onto the island, and to the old ruins that lay hidden on it. He circled overhead, searching for something. Suddenly, he dove down and landed on a crumbling pillar. "Clear this debris away" he ordered her, gesturing to the ground nearby with his wing. Ari raised an eyebrow, but did as he said. Within moments, a circle had appeared on the ground, decorated with ancient lettering. Ari knelt and brushed her hand gently across them, feeling a slight jolt of energy course up her arm as she traced the letters. "Come stand over here" Kartal called to her, snapping her from her studying. Ari stood and went over to stand next to Chase's shoulder, brushing against his side.

Kartal swooped down from above, wings barely brushing certain symbols with his wingtips. "When I tell you to, you must take your wolf form and call out as you hold their images in your mind", he told her as he made his final loop. Ari dropped her human form, and in her place stood a large black wolf with silver shading through her fur. Kartal called "Now" to her softly, and Ari called the twins' images in her mind. She took a deep breath and a howl rose from her throat. The low mournful howl echoed around her, and Ari felt her fur prickle with a sudden wave of energy. The orange moonlight flowed over the trio, and they were engulfed in a bright flash of silver-violet light.


	16. The silver light

As the light faded from around the trio, Ari blinked with surprise "Where are we

A/N: Thank you very much Little Kunai for you reviews, I lover hearing from you! I hope that I can continue writing well enough to keep you guys all reading! Please review!

As the light faded from around the trio, Ari blinked with surprise "Where are we?" she asked, looking around in amazement. "You're home" the hawk stated quietly, "now let's move. Jagura's troops are on the move still" he said, lifting off of her shoulder. "Who's that?"Ari asked, following the dark shadow. "She's the ruling Noble in this area. It's rumored that she's capturing all the wolves that she can find. She wants to open a Noble's paradise at any cost, it's said" he told her, bright eyes searching the lush forest.

The group walked on for several hours, carefully stepping over fallen trees, as they walked deeper and deeper into the forest. Kartal finally came to rest on a low hanging limb. "We're here" he announced. Ari came to a stop as she stared at the huge tree in front of her. Moss hung thick off of its thick branches and its girth was enormous. It was obviously an ancient tree, and as she stood there, she heard the tree sigh as wind blew gently through its leaves. "Press here" Kartal directed her. Ari placed a hand on the gnarled knot in the trunk and pushed lightly. Ari looked around in confusion, "What was that supposed to do?" she asked curiously. Chase nudged her from behind, "Look" he told her, jerking his head to the side.

Ari's eyes widened in surprise as she watched a large boulder slide to reveal a large wooden door embedded in the hill behind it. "Do we go in?" she asked, peering at the door. "Of course" Kartal said, as he flew through the door. Chase and Ari followed him into the opening cautiously. Chase's coat glowed dimly like a clouded bronze moon in the poor lighting. Ari lay a hand on his side to steady herself as she searched for a match. Upon finding one, she struck it, and glanced around the room. Old fashioned lamps lined the walls and turned face the watching hawk. "Is it okay to light them?" she asked gesturing at the lamps. He bobbed his head, and Ari quickly lit each lamp. She looked around the now well-lit room with unveiled surprise. "It's big" she noted, walking to the doors at the back of the room. Upon opening them, she discovered there were two bedrooms and in the final room was a bathroom with a sink toilet and shower/bath. The walls of the small home were wood, as were the floor. "Who lives here?" she asked, turning to face Kartal and Chase. "No one anymore" Kartal told her, "Jagura chased all inhabitants out of the area and then moved her eyes elsewhere" he continued. " This should work perfectly as a safe house then " Chase said to the two. Both the teen and the hawk nodded in agreement.

Ari busied herself for the next few hours cleaning and organizing things as Chase and Kartal talked in low voices. As she settled a final blanket on a bed, she heard Chase call her name. As she walked out of the room, she tripped and fell flat on her face. Chase and Kartal eyed her with amusement sparkling in their eyes. "We need to discuss our plan on how to save the two boys" Chase told her as she sat next to his side. "You and I will scout out the area, and Kartal will scout out the fastest way to the keep is, and gather information" Chase told her. "What keep?" Ari asked. "That's the most likely place that they are being held, but I'll listen to what the soldiers have to say when they patrol the towns." Kartal told her. Ari nodded, "Sounds good" she said. She grinned sheepishly as her stomach grumbled, "So what are we going to do for food?" she asked. "There is a small stove in the corner there, it should still work, and would assume that you and I can hunt" Kartal said, his gold eyes shining. "Well, shall we?" she asked, as she stood. Chase rose and stepped out the door after the two. "I'll stand guard for you and wait for you to get back" he told them. Ari dropped her human form, and together, wolf and hawk set out to hunt. A short while later they returned with their kill. It was a young buck that had been injured, so Ari had taken him as their food source. Ar cleaned the kill and cooked a small portion for herself, Kartal eating what he wanted. The rest was put into the small feezer. After they had all eaten, they curled up and went to sleep. Overhead, the bright reed moon began to set and the sun began to rise.

Ari stretched as she rose from her dreams. ' No nightmares this time, thank goodness' she thought to herself as she swung from the bed.. She walked out the open door and glanced out one of the small hidden windows. It was late in the morning by the time all three had woken and ate. "I'll go into the towns and listen around, and see where the keep is exactly" kartal told Ari as he lifted off the chair he had been perched on. "well, I guess that we should head out as well, huh?" Ari said, glancing at Chase. He bobbed his head and they all set off in different directions.

Ari and Chase patrolled the forest, an oddly matched pair, wolf and stallion. 'It's nice to hear the sound of animals again in the forest.' Ari thought to herself, a grin upon her lips. Together the two paced the border of the forest for over 5 hours. Finally, they returned to the hidden house and waited for the hawk to rturn with what he had found.

About an hour later, a scratch came from the window, and Ari rose to let the hawk in. He soared gracefully into the room and landed on her shoulder. "So what did you all find?" Ari asked the silent bird. He stepped carefully down her arm and moved onto the nearby chairback. "The two that you are looking for are being held in Jagura's keep in the nearby city. We'll need to get special sector passes to get in, but that shouldn't be too difficult. Jagura has some other wolves in there apparently, so she must still be gathering. The boys have been under heavy questioning, and I wasn't reassured by the mens expressions as they talked about it." Kartal told his audience, a hard look entering his eyes. "We've got to get them out of there" Ari said, worry clouding her clear blue eyes. Chase tossed his head in agreement, his bronze mane cascading down his neck. "Well, we can't do anything today, so let's get some rest and we'll head into the city tomorrow." The hawk said as he turned to look at the setting sun. the trio soon fell asleep, and darkness washed over the small home.

As the sun rose the next morning, it found the black wolf relaxing ontop of the boulder hiding the door. Ari sighed softly as she watched the sun rise, "It's so peaceful here…I can't wait till we get the twins out of there, and to safety" she said to herself as she let her mind wander.


	17. Into the Lion's Den

A/N: Sorry I haven't posted any updates in a while…the AP month of hell has begun and I've had four tests to get ready for, bu

A/N: Sorry I haven't posted any updates in a while…the AP month of hell has begun and I've had four tests to get ready for, but I'll update what I have so far!

Disclaimer: okay seriously, this is the last one of these that I'm going to write for this story. I don't own any of the characters but my own.

Ari crept up behind the unsuspecting man quietly. As he turned the corner, he caught sight of her, "Hey, what d'you want?" he asked her gruffly, as he turned to face her. "Shit" Ari muttered. She'd been hoping to catch him unaware and to take his sector pass that way, but now he'd forced her to improvise. Moving quickly, Ari cleared the gap between herself and the man, and with her fingers stiffened, she struck hard under the man's ribcage, her fingers finding their intended target. The man doubled over coughing, blood flecking his lips, eyes wide in surprise and pain, and then he crumpled forward and lay still on the ground.

Ari stood over him for a moment, a frown adorning her face at what she had had to just do. She sighed and knelt next to him. Gently, she unclipped the necklace from around his neck and secured it around her own. Sparing him one final glance, she stood and melted silently into the shadows.

She walked calmly to the point where she had agreed to meet Kartal. They had mapped out the pathways that they would each take and where they would meet up the previous day, so in case anything went wrong, they could easily regroup. Ari nodded slightly at the golden-eyed bird as she approached him, and he took flight at her arrival. Wheeling above her, he directed her through the winding streets until they arrived at the entry gate to the city.

Ari waited in line with the other people who were waiting to go through clearance for several minutes until it was her turn. The guard motioned her through and she stepped under the gate. Her stolen pass flashed green once and the guard nodded to her, "Go on ahead, you're clear". Overhead, Kartal took flight and Ari followed him, sighing silently with relief.

After a short time of wandering, Kartal perched above Ari's head as he surveyed the area that looked utterly unfamiliar to him. "What's up with this place? These people are just walking around like zombies, and there's no scent in this city at all." Ari muttered to herself as she leaned against the wall. "It's because they've forgotten who and what they are," a voice from nearby told her. Ari looked around in surprise. "Up here" the same voice told her, and Ari looked up. A small black cat was perched above her, and he looked at her, green eyes flashing. "Well since you seem to know this city pretty well, can you lead us to the keep?" Kartal asked the cat. In response, he jumped down and began walking down the sidewalk, turning down several small alleys. Ari followed him, as did Kartal.

Within moments, the cat had lead them to a ledge overlooking a mass of wires and tunneling. In the distance, the keep loomed, dark and foreboding. "This is as far as I can take you. Just follow the wiring and they'll lead straight into the keep." The cat told them. "Thank you so much" Ari told the cat, rubbing his head gently. He nodded and watched her leap down and run nimbly along the wiring. "Good luck wolf, you'll need it," the cat said as he watched her slim shape disappear into the distance.

Ari ran swiftly along the path laid out in front of her, and Kartal flew overhead. They reached an opening and they entered into the dimly lit tunnel. Ari crept soundlessly along the dimly lit corridor, twice ducking aside to avoid soldier patrols. She was a slight dark shadow flitting down the corridor followed by the silent rustle of wings above her. She slipped silently inside the door that the soldiers had just come out of when she judged it safe to do so.

Ari slid the heavy metal door shut behind her, and it closed with an ominous click. She tried to reopen it, and sighed in frustration, "Guess we won't be leaving from that exit" Ari told Kartal. The hawk cast a bored look at her, "There's bound to be another way out. You find the twins, I'll find the exit and come find you." Ari nodded and the two exited the room together.

Read and Review please!


	18. Dark Crimson

Ch

A/N: Sorry about the last chapter being kinda short, I was running into a bit of writers block, but hopefully you all like these next few chapters! Oh, and start telling me which one you'd like Ari to end up with, John or James, it would be a big help because right now I have no idea who she should end up with, or if she should even end up with either of them at all. So input would be very welcome!

Kiba watched as the guards drug the first if the struggling twins for the nearby cell, gripping the cold metal bars tightly in his hands. One of the guards caught the second teen by the throat, lifting him off the floor, as he tried to follow his brother from the cell, and fury flared in the teens brown eyes.

"Let. Me. Go." he hissed at the man holding him, and he slammed his foot into the chest pate of the mans armor. The soldier grunted as James' foot connected, and without pausing, landed a solid punch directly into James' stomach. His brown eyes widened in pain and surprise, his face blanching white despite his tan skin.

The soldier threw him roughly to the ground, and he landed hard on his side. "James!" John yelled, struggling to free himself form the guards vice grip on him when he saw his twin lying motionless on the stone floor. The second guard closed the door to their cell and turned, walking to open the door for John's escort.

As John passed Kiba's cell, his brown eyes so filled with fear and terror met Kiba's steely blue gaze. "I'll keep an eye on him, don't worry" Kiba said, answering the teens unspoken question. Relief filled Johns' eyes as he was pulled away and the door behind him closed, leaving Kiba and James alone in the dim room.

Over three hours passed before the guards brought John back, and as he passed Kiba's cell, the thick scent of blood pervaded the room. John's eyes met Kiba's and he was filled with horror at the deadness in them. The guard pushed him roughly into the cell and John stumbled heavily, as he knelt next to his brother.

The soldiers left the room and Kiba turned his attention to the twins in the cell across from his. "Are you alright?" Kiba asked quietly as John turned to face him with that same dead look in his eyes. He shook his head once in response. "Is James okay?" John rasped quietly, his voice cracking. Kiba nodded, "He woke up not long after you left. He should just be sleeping now." Kiba told him.

"What did they do to you? You're bleeding pretty heavily," Kiba noted. John sighed and sank against the wall of the cell, "They pretty much tortured me, I wouldn't tell them what they wanted to know about Ari, mainly because I didn't know the answers." John told him as his eyes drooped shut, and he drifted into a dreamless sleep.

Kiba watched the dozing teen, worry clouding his blue eyes. Not long after that, the guards returned and this time, they took him from the room.

Ari stole down the hallways, keeping as much to the shadows as she possibly could, as she searched for either of the twins scent. As she turned down a small hallway, she failed to notice a tiny camera focusing on her. Within moments, footsteps sounded down the hallways, coming directly towards her. Turning, Ari found herself blocked from behind and ahead as soldiers filled the hallway.

Pressing against the stone wall, Ari felt cold fear steal into her heart. Terror filled her eyes as the soldiers moved in towards her. "Give in peacefully" the guard closest to her advised, not unkindly. "If you give in, it'll be easier on you and we won't have to torture your friends," another guard told her. At this fury filled her terrified gaze. "How dare you! How dare you use them as a bargaining chip, you've no right to lay even a finger on them!" Ari said, advancing angrily on the soldier who had spoken, holding his surprised stare with her own furious one.

"If that's your final decision then so be it" the leader of the squad told her. At this, Ari turned, a cold look on her face. Upon seeing the soldiers raise their weapons, she dropped into a crouch, readying herself for the oncoming attacks.

The soldiers rushed her, several at a time. Two approached her from either side and Ari smirked. As they closed in on her, Ari flipped neatly into the air, flipping upside down as she gripped one of the men's shoulders, throwing him to the ground as she let momentum and gravity carry her. Despite how strongly she fought, each time she turned to face a new soldier, a new one attacked her from behind. Suddenly, something solid connected with the back of her head and the room around her dimmed as she fell forward. "Took her long enough to leave an opening." A man said, "Take her to the cell near the two boys." At this, Ari felt arms lift her up and carry her down the hallway, then, she let darkness overtake her.

James sat up with a groan when he heard the clang of a door opening and the soldier's boots clipping across the floor. The cell door across from their stood open and the cell itself was empty. 'Where'd that guy go?' he wondered, then he scrambled to his feet when the soldiers approached. In one of the men's arms lay Ari. Upon seeing her condition, he sucked in a sharp breath of air. Her face and clothes were covered in blood, every limb was covered in gashes, and small drops of blood fell steadily from her hair.

The man entered the cell and gently laid Ari on the ground, brushing her dark hair out of her face. "Leave her be" the other guard told him and the soldier stood, turning to face him. "Don't give me orders. She looks human to me, so I'll treat her like one. Its not right to treat any of them like this" he said, angrily brushing past his comrade and stormed out of the room. The remaining soldier stared after his partner and shook his head in irritation, and after a throwing one final look of disgust at Ari, he shut the cell door and left the room as well.

James called to her several times, hoping that she would wake up, but she remained silent. He watched her worriedly, reassured by the slight rise and fall of her breathing that she was still alive at least. A groan came from behind him as John woke up.

James turned to look at brother as his eyes tried to focus on him. "Hey man" John whispered softly. James smiled faintly at him "Hey" he said, "How are you doing?" he asked him. John just laughed and then began coughing as pain ripped down his back. He sighed as the pain ebbed away and closed his eyes in relief. James helped him sit up as he struggled to raise himself up, and as he did so, John caught sight of the girl in the cell across from theirs.

"Is that Ari?" John asked, a look of horror crossing his face. James swallowed hard and nodded as he watched her. Both were quiet as they watched her, silence enveloping the room until John broke it. "Our life was pretty boring until we met her, huh?" he stated, and James nodded, still watched Ari.

John frowned in confusion as he watched Ari sleep. 'For a moment, something flickered. I swear I saw a big black…dog for a moment…' he thought. "What the…" James breathed in surprise. "Her wounds I swear that they look halfway healed now compared to how they looked a minute ago" he said, watching her closely, and John nodded.

Their observations were cut short as the door to the room slid open again, and four guards entered the room. The stopped in front of the twins cell, and one of them pressed the switch to open the cell door. Both teens shrunk back as two men entered the cell.

Each man grabbed a boy and pulled them forcefully from the cell. Both brothers struggled with all they had, striking out at their captors, while behind them, in Ari's cell she returned to consciousness. She sat up upon hearing the struggle outside of her cell, her wounds vanishing as the wolf healed the last few injuries.

Ari scrambled to her feet and without pausing, gripped the bars, the wolf aiding her as she tried to pry apart the bars. Suddenly, the guard holding James stumbled backwards heavily as the teen kicked him solidly between the legs. As a result, the man fell into the guard who had opened the twin's door, causing him to hit another switch on the panel.

"Take them, I'll handle her" said one of the men not holding the boys. Ari felt a growl building in her throat as she realized the man was the same one who had captured her earlier. The two guards who held the twins began moving towards the door, when Ari's cell door slid open. She took advantage of it and ran out of the cell. The guard who had been pushed earlier into the control panel had accidentally hit the button that opened her door.

The same guard who had caught her off-guard earlier moved to stop her, and she smirked at him, head held high. "It's payback time," she told him, as she stared coldly at him, ice in her smile, and she watched fear twisting onto his face. With a flick of her wrist, a thin assassins blade appeared in her hand and she began to attack him with it.

Within moments, she had given him a series of deep gashes across his chest and the other guards watched in amazement at the sight of a teenage girl dancing around their captain. James took advantage of his captor's distraction and wormed out of his grasp and he ran towards Ari.

The second guard helping the captain straight-armed him, slamming him into the ground hard and knocking the air out of him. "Get the other one out of here. This one's being a bit too troublesome, so I'll personally take care of him." Said the soldier standing over James to the one holding John. The man nodded and took John from the room easily despite how hard he struggled.

As Ari danced around the man she was fighting. James struggled to sit up when a heavy foot slammed into his chest, pinning him down to the ground. He looked up in terror when he heard the cold metallic "shhink" as a sword was drawn. He barely had time to cry out before a searing pain filled his every thought. Ari froze at the sound of his scream, her eyes filling with terror at what she saw.

The guard had driven his sword completely through James' left arm as he stood over him, a cruel smile playing on his lips as he watched the emotions crossing her face. "Don't do anything foolish, or I might have to do some more damage to your friend" he told her, still smiling. As she met James eyes, she felt tears filling her own, 'This is all my fault!' she thought, "Please, just don't hurt him anymore. Please. I'll do what you want, just please, leave him alone!" she pleaded.

The squad leader behind her took advantage of the moment and pinned her arms tightly behind her, and the smile on the other guards face broadened. He pulled his sword free of James' arm easily. The teen cried out in pain again and Ari felt her heart ache as tears made their way down his face.

The soldier holding James down caught her eyes and held them in his cruel gaze as he shifted his grip on his sword hilt. Ari's eyes went wide when she realized what the shift in the mans grip meant. "No!" she screamed, struggling hopelessly to free herself from her captor, and James, realizing what was about to happen went still, raw terror in his brown eyes.

"Keep in mind, this is all your fault," the soldier holding James told her. "Please don't" Ari cried as the sword flashed down, deep into the right side of James' chest, and she felt her knees give out at his cry of pain. Hot tears fell from her eyes as the man pulled his sword free, and gestured to his companion to release her.

He dropped his hold on her and strode towards the exit with his companion. "We'll be back for you later" he said over his shoulder as he exited. "Why?" Ari whispered, her tears falling on James chest as she knelt next to him. He was bleeding so heavily that his shirt was rapidly blossoming dark crimson red.

'If there's such a thing as God, please don't let this sweet boy die. I'd do anything to change this outcome. Please, something, someone, help me!' she prayed as she watched his face twist in pain, his hand tightly gripping hers, as her tears fell on his cheek.

Hope you liked it, I had a fun time writing it I know that much!

Read and review please and tell me which twin you'd like Ari to end up with!

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	19. Healing and Reunions

A/N: So again, keep voting who you would like to see Ari end up with if anyone

A/N: So again, keep voting who you would like to see Ari end up with if anyone! Thank you Lady Rea for your vote, I loved hearing you opinion. Oh and in response to your question, Kiba had been taken out of the room after John was brought back in the previous chapter, so he wasn't able to help her out there. Hope that cleared it up a bit!

Ari knelt next to James, his blood staining her knees. His eyes were squeezed tight and his jaw was clenched so hard that a vein was standing out clearly in his neck. Ari studied the massive injuries, the gash in his stomach and the hole in his chest were both bleeding profusely.

'There's so much blood…how can I stop it? I've got to do something, or he'll die. He's losing way too much as it is, he won't last much longer.' Ari realized, despair washing over her. She searched her mind for a way to help him. She thought, hands moving without thinking, pressing on the wounds with her hands, and a memory came to her.

**Flashback**

Ari watched her mother as she knelt next to the injured man. The mother and daughter had been out exploring, Hana teaching her daughter little by little of her gifts, and Ari working her hardest to please her mother, when they came across the man. He had been attacked and was left badly injured. The grass around his body was stained red, and he was obviously in a lot of pain. Ari watched her mother's hands skillfully flicking from wound to wound, pressing here and there, her blue eyes focused intently on her task.

"Now Ari, watch. I'm going to show you how to heal someone. Keep in mind that this is not something you should do often, use it only when you absolutely have to. It drains your strength and leaves you weakened for several hours. Also, if you don't concentrate fully, or some other variable interferes, the intended healing may not be as you wished it to be." She said still focused on the man. "Why would you help him mother? After all, his kind is responsible for all the deaths of our family." Ari said with a hint of distaste. At this, Hana turned to look at her child, "Human or no, he's in need of help. A life's a life, no matter whose it is, and should not be taken lightly." She said fixing her daughter with a hard stare.

This said, Hana took the mans wrist and cut cleanly across it, and pulled the central vein free. She quickly repeated the process on herself, her eyes not betraying the pain she felt as she cut across her own wrist. As she focused her energy on the two veins that she held connected, Ari felt a surge of power emanating from her mother. The two veins joined as one, and Hana and the man were bathed in a violet light, her blood flowing into him. Almost instantly, Ari saw the mans wounds healing and moments later, Hana severed the tie between them. The line crossing her mothers wrist and the mans closed quickly, as the violet light faded away, only a thin scar remaining to show what had happened.

Hana rocked back on her heels and regarded her daughter. "Did you see what I did?" she asked her. "You connected yourself with him with your veins, and let your blood heal him like ours heals us." She told her mother slowly. Hana nodded, " That's basically correct, but it's more of a willing something to happen, telling it to more than anything. Hold your focus on that one point, and see the two connecting. It takes a lot of will power at first, but once you master it, you can do what I just did easily." Hana told Ari, as a breeze blew softly, stirring her long silver-tipped hair.

End Flashback

Ari took a deep breath, " James" she said quietly, "Look at me. Please." She asked him, brow furrowed with worry. He opened his eyes slowly, as if doing so caused him great pain, and Ari saw how much pain he was truly feeling as she looked in his eyes. The normally brown color was almost black in the dimness of the room, but Ari could see the mixture of pain and suffering that filled his eyes. "James, I can help you" Ari told him. The pained teen turned his face from her, "Just let me die, I'm not of any use to you in this condition" he told her in a rasping voice.

Ari felt tears filling her eyes, threatening to spill free, and then, anger. "You jerk!!" she yelled. James turned to face her, surprise etched in his features, replacing the pain in his eyes. "I went through hell and back practically to get here, and now you want me to just let you die?! I don't think so; I won't let you! I swore I would do anything within my limits to bring John and you back safely, one way or another. So you can accept my help or not, but I'm getting you home alive! You both mean so much to me, I can't just sit back and let either of you die, so please, let me help you" she said, tears spilling free and falling as she held his eyes. "Please" she repeated softly. James was silent for a moment as he looked at her, feeling tears threatening to show. 'Amazing… here I am, about to die from all this blood loss, and she's basically telling me how she feels…that's irony for you' he thought, wincing as a new bolt of pain ripped through him. 'I owe it to her I guess, and John too, to accept her help' he decided.

"Okay" he breathed, nodding once. Relief filled her eyes and a small smile touched her lips, "So I have your permission?" she asked him. James nodded again, curtly this time as he fought against the pain. "Alright then, you don't want to see this so close your eyes." She told him, dragging a sharp nail across her wrist. As she did the same to him, his eyes flew open with horror. "What..are you doing?" he asked her, his voice low with fear. "Shhh…its ok. You'll be fine, just don't look if you can." Ari lined both veins up with one another and began to draw strength and energy from deep inside. The wolf joined her and lent her her strength as well.

James felt an odd sensation sweep over him, one that felt like raw energy, as the two merged into one. 'Here goes my first attempt in over 10 years at this.' Ari thought as she felt energy being pulled from her and transferred into James.

James felt strength flowing into him, and upon looking down, he saw his wounds healing, and the overwhelming pain began to ebb away. He felt an odd presence around him as Ari cut the vein tying them and the wounds healed. It felt dangerous…but familiar at the same time.

Ari rolled back on her heels and looked at him. "Better?" she asked him quietly. He nodded, "But how did you…"he asked, trailing off as she shook her head. "I can't tell you that right now, it's a bit complicated," she told him offering him her hand as she stood. He took her hand and she pulled him to his feet.

As he stood, she stumbled slightly, and he caught her arm. Ari looked at him, and he was worried by the overwhelming exhaustion that clouded her eyes, "Thanks." she said quietly. James nodded, frowning slightly, "Are you ok?" he asked her in an undertone. Ari nodded, "I'm just a little tired, that's all," she told him.

Her sharp hearing caught the sound of footsteps approaching, "We've got to get out of here," Ari told him, pulling him after her as she ran out the door. Together, the two of them fled down the corridor, Ari guided by instinct as she pulled James behind her. Sounds of snarling and swords clashing reached her, and she skidded momentarily to a halt.

Ari's eyes widened with surprise, "That voice…and scent…Kiba?" she cried, and she ran towards the sounds. Ari pushed the doors open, and slid again to a dead halt. "Kiba…" she breathed, her eyes filling with tears. In front of her, a feral looking teen was engaged in a deadly dance with two Nobles, a male and female. Darcia held a sword as he attacked her brother, and Ari snarled as Kiba received a slash to his face.

He turned to face the male Noble when he caught sight of her. Kiba froze, his eyes going wide with shock, and several emotions flittered across his face. "Ari," he said quietly. Darcia turned to her, a smirk on his aristocratic face, "Well, it seems I'll need a better cage to hold you wolf," he said. James looked at her with surprise, 'Wolf?' he wondered silently.

Ari stepped forward, her head held proudly, "So what if I am? Surely you aren't afraid of little old me?" she asked him, a feral look entering her eyes. Darcia simply snorted, "Of course not," he answered as she moved to stand next to Kiba. The two glanced at one another and smiled. 'I've got him, you get her," Ari thought to Kiba. He nodded and leapt towards Jagura.

Ari turned to face the man, "Why?" she asked him, "Why kidnap them?" Darcia laughed, "What better way to get the second wolf of paradise to come?" he told her. Ari stiffened in anger and readied herself to fight. Darcia swept towards her, long black hair flying behind him and she rose to meet him. Gone was the calm girl that James had known, and an experienced fighter stood in her place. James started as she caught the mans outstretched hand and…bit it?

Time seemed to slow as he watched the blood well up and spurt from the Nobles hand, as her unnaturally sharp teeth bit through. Her silver tipped raven hair floated around her, and pieces flipped into her eyes. The normal blue eye color that James knew was gone, and instead was replaced by bright gold. The noble simply glanced at the teen in mild irritation.

He flung his arm wide with the girl still attached, and Ari was thrown backwards. Her gaze sharpened as she simply reversed her flight and landed crouched on the wall. James stood still as he watched the two fight, confusion etched across his face. He started forward as Ari was thrown into another wall, but relaxed marginally when she flipped and landed in the same crouch as before.

Ari sprang neatly off the wall and began to attack the noble again. James glanced to where Kiba was fighting the female noble in time to see a glowing emblem appear around a…wolf? He shook his head and blinked hard, and Kiba stood there again. 'What is happening here?' James wondered helplessly. Kiba snarled as he felt himself being drawn down as the emblem pulled at him. Jagura just smiled as she watched the proud white wolf struggle to stay standing. "Just give up," she told him, "Never!" Kiba snarled, lips pulled back to reveal gleaming white teeth.

'I've got to do something to help, I can't just stand here forever!' James thought, and he felt a sudden surge of anger and an odd feeling sweep over him. He staggered forward suddenly as he felt something try to push through his mind. James repressed a gag, and his eyesight wavered and sharpened. "What's happening to me?" he groaned softly. Ari glanced over at him briefly, but before she could move, Darcia attacked again.

The two nobles were nearing one another, and as Ari caught Kiba's eyes, she saw he needed help. She darted past Darcia and slammed her shoulder into the blonde nobles side. Jagura stumbled from the force of the blow, and in that instance, Kiba felt the power pulling at him wane slightly. He leapt towards the woman as she stumbled, and sank his teeth deep into her throat as she fell.

Jagura's violet eyes were wide with shock and surprise, her hair floating around her as she fell, blood staining her chest as it flowed from her throat. She crumpled to the ground and lay still, blonde hair turning dark as blood stained it. Darcia moved to kneel next to the dying woman. Kiba stood silently next to his sister as the watched the two. Finally, Darcia turned to face them, a look of fury marring his features. At this, Kiba stepped in front of Ari, pushing her behind him with one hand, "Stay back" he told her in an undertone. "This won't go unpunished," the noble said as he stepped forward.

A low hum filled the room and the floor began to vibrate. Both men halted their approach towards one another and looked up. As James knelt on the ground, it was like everything happened in slow motion. He saw Kiba turn to Ari, his blue-green eyes filled with a hint of panic, grab Ari and push her to the ground, covering her with his body. Then, the room exploded in a flash of red light.

James rolled onto his back and stood, brushing the dust and rubble from him, and saw Ari and Kiba doing the same. The red light flickered again, and more of the room dissolved into rubble. "Kiba! We've got to get out of here!" Ari yelled above the noise. He nodded and pushed her towards the door, "Get out of here and make sure John and James get out safely too," Kiba told her. Ari met his eyes with a cool look of her own and an alpha look entered his eyes, then softened. "Don't worry. I'll get out of here as soon as I free the others, then I'll pick up your trail and find you." Kiba told her gently.

Ari breathed a sigh of relief and nodded, "Don't you dare disappear on me again," she told him. Kiba nodded and pushed her in James' direction. Ari ran towards James, grabbing his hand and pulling him after her as she ran past. She paused briefly and took a deep breath, searching for John's scent. The wolf helped her sort out all the different smells until she found John's familiar scent.

"Why'd we stop?" James asked her, fighting off a huge headache that came out of nowhere. Ari glanced at him, "We have to find John before we can leave," she told him as she locked eyes with him. Ari's brow furrowed as she met his eyes, 'Are they lighter than before?' she pondered, peering at him, 'They're definitely more amber gold than before…' she noted. "What? What are you looking at?" he asked her, his voice betraying more irritation than he felt.

Ari drew back, "Nothing," she said, stung by his tone, "Let's get John and leave" Ari said as she turned down the hall, following John's scent. James followed her, mentally kicking himself for his harsh tone, 'Wow, I really screwed that up' he thought dejectedly, as he followed the dark haired girl through the maze of the keep.

Explosions sounded behind them and Ari seemed to follow her path blindly. "Do you even know where you're going?" James shouted above the noise. Ari ignored him and kept moving forward. They reached a small door, and Ari paused, then jerked the door open wide. As she slid inside, the smell of blood and tears hit her full force.

'Why is that smell so strong? What is it?' James wondered, a small whine escaping from his throat, 'And how can I see so well in the dark?' he realized. Ari flipped on the overhead light, and strode quickly over to lab table where John lay unconscious. She swiftly unhooked the IV's from his arms and flipped off the monitors. James unbuckled the straps with shaking hands as he looked at his twin. Suddenly, a sharp pain ripped through his head, and he fell to his knees with a groan, holding his head in his hands.

Ari spun around in time to see him fall to his side and curl into a ball. She knelt next to him, blue eyes dark with concern. When she placed one of her hands gently on his shoulder, she felt him shudder, and his eyes met hers, filled with confusion and pain. "What's wrong?" Ari asked him quietly. "It feels like something's trying to rip out of me," he groaned as another wave of pain washed over him, and black spots blurred his vison.

As Ari studied him, a thought struck her, and as she held his chin, she felt dread gripping her stomach. 'Shit, his eyes are definitely more gold now than they were before…I was hoping I had just imagined it, but its pretty obvious now that I didn't…'she noted, worry clouding her eyes. "This wasn't supposed to happen…my blood should have just healed him, not turned him into what I am…unless…what if he was so far gone that that was the only way he could be healed?" she mused, as he groaned again.

"Can you stand?" she asked him, and after a moment, he nodded. Ari helped him stand, gently pulling him to his feet. She stepped over to where John lay and scooped him into her arms. Ari turned to face James as he moved to open the door for her. "Will he be alright?" he asked her as she passed by him as she exited the room. 'I hope so…' Ari thought, the wolf in her pulling back in distaste as she smelled death on the unconscious teen. "I'm sure that he'll be fine," Ari told him, "Now let's get out of here!" Ari yelled as another explosion ripped through the building.

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	20. EscapingFreedom

A/N: So again, keep voting who you would like to see Ari end up with if anyone

A/N: So the next few chapters might not be as interesting as some of the previous ones, mainly because I wrote the after I wrote the 24th chapter, weird, but I really wanted to write that one chapter. I'm so sorry that its taken me this long to update, my computer was acting weird so I had to get it fixed…I've had these chapters written for a while, I just didn't have anywhere I could post them from. So anyways, thanks for all the reviews, patience, and for the votes, keep them coming!

Disclaimer: same as always, see the first few chapters if you want to read it.

As the two ran down the halls, Ari's ears caught the sounds of heavy boots approaching the quickly from behind. "We need to find the way out, and fast!" Ari told James as they ran. A thought came to her and she made a quick decision.

"Here. Take John and keep running. I'll still be able to find you, I'm just going to find the way out first and come get you two as fast as I can." She told him, stopping to hand him John. "Alright. Please, be careful" James told her as he took his twin from her. Ari nodded and ran back the way that they had come as the wolf directed her. James watched her form disappear down the hall, and then turned to continue on his way.

Ari shifted forms after she was sure that James couldn't see her anymore, and relied on the wolf's instincts to find the exit. 'that way, now a right, straight ahead, then a left' the wolf thought to the girl as she flew down the halls, 'got it memorized?' she asked Ari as she skidded to a stop on an open landing, facing the deep forest. She stood there for a moment, tongue lolling from her mouth as she calmed her breathing from the run, when a loud click sounded from behind her.

The black wolf whirled around, a growl building deep in her throat as a snarl revealed gleaming white teeth. She spun to face a man wearing a long brown trench like jacket holding a rifle. "I've got you now wolf," the man said as he leveled the gun at her. ' Let me handle him, I'm sure I can get him to leave us alone if you give me a moment' Ari told her other half, and the wolf mentally consented.

The man's eyes widened in surprise as a young, raven haired girl stood slowly from where seconds before a large black wolf had stood. "Sir, I'm begging you, you've got to let me leave so I can help my friends" Ari said to the hunter. He snorted, "Why so you and the rest of your foul demon wolf friends can escape after you've killed all the humans that you can?" he told her, keeping the rifle trained on her head. Ari shook her head briefly, "No, I'm not trying to get other wolves out. I have to save two human boys that are badly injured. Please sir, I can't let either of them die, I'd rather die then see either of them hurt anymore than what they are" she told him, her blue eyes shining with unshed tears.

As her blue eyes met his, Quent felt such surprise at the emotion that he saw in them, that his steady aim on her wavered and he lowered his gun. 'She truly cares about them…' he realized as tears spilled down her cheeks. He sighed and lowered his rifle. Holding her eyes with his, "You better take good care of those two then, you hear?" he told her quietly. "Now get out of here," he said over his shoulder as he left the room.

Ari smiled at the man's back and let the wolf take back over and trotted down the hallways, the wolf memorizing the paths as she traveled them. 'That was a nice touch with the tears by the way' she told Ari, and Ari smiled 'thanks' she said, and the wolf continued silently down the halls. She reached the spot where they had left James, and followed his trail for several minutes.

From ahead of her, Ari heard the sound of footsteps, boots clanging on the stone floor. 'Soldiers, the boys are ahead, but we've got to reach them before the soldiers do' the wolf told her other half as she darted down a nearly invisible side alley and followed it until she came to another main hallway. She dipped her head and caught both boys scent and ran towards them.

The sound of approaching soldiers was increasingly louder as the she-wolf cleared the final turn. "James, you can put me down now, I'm ok" she heard John say to his twin weakly as she became human again and ran around the corner to them. "Hey, I know how to get out of here," she told them breathlessly, "Come on", she said, tugging at James' arm. 'Hurry!' the wolf told her other half, worry coloring her warning.

Ari checked herself and pushed the two boys into the hallway in front of her and into the small hallway, and they were almost out of danger when Ari heard James mutter "shit…" and slide to a halt. Ari felt her heart sink when she saw the hallway in front of her filled with waiting soldiers. "Come with us peacefully and the girl won't get hurt," said a cold metallic voice. Both boys looked at one another uncertainly, then nodded and stepped in front of her.

Ari felt her lip twinge and realized the wolf was back with her, 'What do we do?' she asked the wolf, silently despairing. The wolf simply met her others gaze with a matter-of-fact look, 'You let me handle it is what you do' she told the teen calmly, and Ari nodded after a moment. Seconds later, the black wolf stood where Ari had.

As the man swung his raised weapon at the twins, a black form leapt through the narrow gap between the boy's heads. All that was visible was a black blur as she leapt towards the mans unguarded throat. She sunk her sharp teeth deep into the soft flesh that she found there, nails gripping his chest plate for support. She leapt backwards as he fell and landed in a low crouch, white teeth stained red and dripping.

"That way!" she told the two boys, flicking her ear left as she moved to attack the next opponent. James' froze "Did that wolf…did that wolf just talk? And why was its voice so familiar?" he muttered. "I don't care right now, let's take its advice, I'm pretty sure it's on our side" John said, pulling his shell-shocked brother along. The two ran down the halls until they reached a division where they could either continue straight or go left. 'Which way?" John rasped, looking at James. James sighed, "I haven't the faintest idea…how about we go left?"

John stumbled as he stepped in the indicated direction and James caught him as he fell towards the ground. "Easy now…" James muttered to his twin as he helped him back up gently. John winced and groaned quietly as James pressed unknowingly against his wounded back. When James' looked at him worriedly, he shook his head, "My back's pretty torn up right now, that's all" he said wincing. James nodded and the two continued down the hall. They hadn't gone more than five feet when Ari came running up to them.

"Wrong way. They way outs this way," she told them, slipping John's other arm over her shoulders. "How did you…?" James started to say when he saw all the blood on her clothes. "Don't ask me that right now, I can't explain it at the moment, I'd need a lot more time and right now, times a precious commodity" she said, cutting him off. " Are you okay though?" John asked her quietly, and Ari nodded. "Don't worry, none of its mine," she said, a small smirk flitting across her lips.

Shouts sounded from down the hall behind them as the trio reached the open landing that lead to freedom. James and Ari both groaned when John sagged suddenly. "He's out" Ari noted when she lifted John's eyelids and saw his eyes rolled back. 'Please Kartal hurry…' Ari prayed silently, as footsteps came closer. A dark haired youth stepped into the area and looked at the three of them with a small smile. Several more people entered the room; a silver haired man with a scar running across his chest, a young auburn haired boy, a slightly chubby teenage boy, and a blue eyes female.

"Kiba!" Ari cried, throwing her arms around his neck as he caught her in a hug, swinging her around in a circle. As she pressed her face into his shoulder, Kiba met the eyes of the watching teen and nodded slightly to him. 'Thank you,' he though silently to James as he held Ari, 'Too bad that I know that what I have to do next is going to make her mad at me probably…' he thought with a sigh. When Ari drew back and met his calm blue eyes with hers, she felt her heart sink. "You lied didn't you…you aren't leaving with us are you…" she said, not questioning him, simply stating what she already saw in his eyes.

Kiba sighed, "I'm sorry Ari, but I have to find Cheza, I have to…" he told her quietly, and Ari's blue eyes filled with surprise. "The flower maiden?" She gasped, and Kiba nodded. Ari was silent for a moment, then, " Promise me this alright?" she said turning to the members of her brothers pack, "Don't let him die on me, please." Ari said to them. The others nodded and she smiled faintly, as overhead a familiar screech sounded and everyone looked up. "Kartal!" Ari called to the hawk and he flew down to land on her shoulder, his brilliant gold eyes sweeping around the landing, regarding the assembled pack.

"We have to leave fast, the nobles are attacking one another and soon this building will be destroyed," he told Ari. "Get them out of here while you can and there's still time" Kiba told the hawk, who bobbed his head in response. He lifted off of Ari's shoulder and took to the air again, circling above the group. Kiba stepped forward and gave Ari a quick hug, "I promise that I'll come find you after we get Cheza out of here," he whispered in her ear. Ari nodded as she hugged him back, tears falling from her eyes, "Be careful!" she whispered back to him.

The two separated, Kiba moving back to stand with his pack, Ari lifting John's other arm over her head, and moving to follow Kartal's indicated path. "You'll have to jump it, so you might want to leave John here and take James across first" Kartal told her as he soared above her. Ari looked at the gap between the ledge and the forests edge and nodded. "I'll take you across first, then I'll come back for John" she told James. He eyed her in disbelief, "There's no way you can carry either of us across that gap," he told her, looking at the ledge almost 20 feet away, and Ari sighed.

"Trust me, I think I'll be able to handle it" Ari told him as she helped him set John back on the ground. As she did so, the smallest member of Kiba's pack came running up to her, "Are you really his sister?" he asked her, cinnamon brown eyes twinkling, and she nodded and smiled at him. "Yeah, I really am. My name's Ari." She told him. "Well Ari, we'll make sure that he stays alive, and we'll all come and find you," the silver haired man told her, placing a hand on the cubs head. She smiled and nodded her thanks to him and he turned and followed the rest out of the room.

Ari turned to James, who was still kneeling next to John, "Are you ready?" she asked him. He shook his head lightly, then stood, "I guess so…" he said, doubt creeping into his voice. "Alright then, hold on and run," she said as she took his hand and walked back several feet. "Count of three and we run, 1...2..3!" she said, leaping forward, pulling him after her. James stumbled slightly, the caught his stride and ran. 'Are we going to make it? There's no way that we can, that's a huge gap!' he thought, his steps faltering as they neared the edge of the gap.

"Trust me," Ari told him quietly, squeezing his hand gently, eyes still fixed on the forest ahead. James swallowed hard, and as he reached the edge of the gap, he tensed his legs and leapt with her. Ari let the wolf's strength help carry her and James across the gap. The two cleared the gap, Ari landing lightly on her feet, James stumbling and falling. "How did we…How were you able to…" he asked her, eyes wide and not comprehending what had happened. Ari bit her lip, closed her eyes and sighed. "I'll explain it all later, I promise. But first I have to get John out of there" she said, turning to face the keep again.

James watched her leap across the divide again, her long black hair flowing behind her, and he shook his head disbelievingly. 'There's no way that that is normal…' he thought to himself. Ari gathered John in her arms, the wolf wrinkling her nose at the scent of death that clung to John. She cleared the gap for the third time with only a little bit of difficulty than before, mostly due to the shift in her center of balance now that she was carrying John. As her feet touched the forest ground, shots sounded from behind her, and she gasped as sudden pain ripped through her body. She turned half crouched to face the keep, wincing at the sharp pain coursing through her body.

On the landing she had just come from stood Darcia, his eyes blazing with fury. "Shit…Run!" she said, spinning and began to run, pushing James in front of her. More shots rang out as they entered the forest, glancing off of trees and hitting the ground around them. James let out a yelp of pain and stumbled as stray shots nicked his arm and leg. "You alright?" Ari asked him as she caught up with the now limping teen. He grit his teeth and nodded. After a mile or so, Ari slowed and let out a low whistle.

"Chase's on his way Ari. I am so sorry I didn't even see Darcia there or I would have warned you…" Kartal told her as he drifted down towards her. Ari shook her head, "It's not your fault, don't worry about it," she told the hawk. Ari lay John on the ground, and he stirred faintly. As James knelt next to his brother, he frowned, "That smell…it smells like blood…but I know it's not mine or John's…Ari, how badly are you hurt?" James demanded as he turned to face her. Ari met his worried look with a stony stare, "I'll live, my main goal is to get John and you out of here alive before all else," she told him grimly.

Before he could respond, hoof beats drummed nearby, and Chase trotted into the clearing and moved to stand next to him. "Help me lift him." Ari told James as she partially lifted John onto the stallions back. Once they had him secured on Chase's back, Ari gestured for James to swing up behind his brother. James easily swung behind John, and then turned to offer Ari his free hand, but she shook her head, saying, "You're the slower ones right now, and we need to get to safety fast, Darcia will be sending out troops soon enough I'm sure…"

"But you're hurt too!" James told her, but Ari shook her head and started off at a jog, Chase following her at an easy lope. 'You're hurt pretty badly aren't you? John smells like death, and James' scent is different, more like yours than before. You'll have to tell me all of what happened.' Chase said to the raven-haired girl mentally. When she barely nodded to him, he nudged her gently, 'You doing okay?' he asked her. 'I'll be okay, but I'm loosing a lot of blood. I'll have to let the wolf take over so I can heal soon, but I have to heal John too..' she though back to Chase. He eyed her, mahogany eyes clouded with concern, "take care of yourself first, he'll live a while longer yet.' Chase told her firmly, and Ari sighed.

'A shot in the shoulder, leg, back and side..great. and they all hurt like no other' she thought to herself, gritting her teeth against a new wave of pain. 'If only I weren't too stubborn to just give in a let Chase give me a ride, but right now those two boys are more important than my pain..' she thought. James watched Ari as she ran beside him, his features reflecting the worry that was twisting inside of him.

John stirred and opened his eyes. He stared blankly ahead for a moment, the winced at the pain in his back, and then rolled his head back with a sigh, resting it on James' shoulder. "I…feel like I slammed face first into a brick wall…" he muttered. James turned his attention from the wounded girl next to him to his brother. James looked at his brother's face, pale and drawn tight in pain, and he felt a stab of fear enter into his heart. 'He looks terrible, but what can I do?' James wondered.

Ari stumbled and she felt a wound in her side rip open even wider and she felt slick blood coat her side. She bit back a cry of pain when she saw James turn to look at her worriedly, a question posed on his lips. "I'm going to run ahead and see how far we still have to go. Chase knows the way, so you guys will be pretty safe." Ari told James, ignoring his protest.

James watched her disappear into the shadows of the trees and felt worry twist deeper into his stomach. "She's hurt pretty badly isn't she Chase? Don't bother acting like you can't talk to me, I know that you can talk to Ari, so please, just tell me the truth." James pleaded with the stallion quietly. Chase's sides rumbled as he whickered and breathed out a heavy sigh. James' eyes widened in surprise when he heard a deep majestic voice speak when Chase stopped and turned his head to look back at the boys. "She's hurt badly, I can't lie about that, but then again neither of you is doing too great, are you? You feel different don't you. Ever since she healed you?" the voice asked him.

"…Chase..?" James asked slowly, and the stallion bobbed his head, tossing his mane in the air. "This is so weird…but I'll go with it. It feels like there's something inside of me, its not that unfamiliar, but its nothing that I've ever felt before. And I'm not sure why exactly, but I know that my eyesight and sense of smell have gotten a lot better…this is just so bizarre! How can I be talking to an animal?" James mused quietly.

John turned to face his brother; wincing at the pain it caused in his back, and studied his twins face. "There is something different…your eyes aren't the same shade of brown like mine anymore, they're more a…goldish amber color." John said as he studied his twin's eyes more. James turned and looked at Chase when the stallion shivered, shaking his head. "Something went wrong then. Those changes should have never happened." Chase told him. "Something's coming…but I can't quite tell what…" James noted suddenly as his ear caught the sound of nails clicking over the rocks nearby, and he strained to hear more.

Back with Ari

As Ari ran, she called the wolf and met with her in the sanctuaries of her mind. The two faced one another, black wolf with silver shading through her fur, and human girl with raven black hair shading to white at the tips. Bright gold eyes locked with bright blue in a stare that lasted several minutes. "You can't keep pushing yourself like this, it's suicide, we'll both end up dead. Let me heal you. Shift. That's the whole reason that your mother taught you to separate yourself," the wolf told her, and Ari sighed.

"I know, I know. But what if they find out what I really am? I've already done them more harm than good, especially James. He's becoming something that he was never meant to be, and it's all my fault!" Ari cried out, agitated. In a flash, the wolf had leapt up and pinned the upset girl to the ground.

"If either of them cares for you in the least, they will accept you for what you are! There's nothing wrong with you, it's not as though you have some deadly disease that they can catch, you're you." She snarled at the teen. "Besides, they'll have to accept it if your blood turned James, which I'm sure it did," she finished.

Ari stared shocked, into the gold eyes of her other half, and sighed, "You win. Let's head back." Ari said and the wolf stepped lightly off of her chest. When Ari stood at last, she nudged the girl's hand, "We go back and finish this. But I'm taking over for a while so you can heal. When we get back to the house, then you can have control back, but until then, I'm in control," she told the teen.

With that, the black wolf took back her shape from the girl, and back in the forest, a black wolf stood where a raven-haired girl had previously stood. It shook its head once, as if clearing it, and then turned and trotted back in the direction the girl had come from.

A/N:

Whew! That one was a long one to type; I've had it written on paper for a while until I was happy with it, so I hope that you liked it! I'll post the next few chapters as soon as I transfer them from paper onto here, so sit tight, they're coming!

Read and review please! And don't forget to give me input on whom you want to end up with Ari, John, James, or neither. Thanks for reading so far!


	21. Responsibilities

A/N: So here's the next chapter, its kinda short I know, but I hope you like it all the same

A/N: So here's the next chapter, its kinda short I know, but I hope you like it all the same! Many thanks to little kunai and lady rea for all of their reviews, I love hearing what you guys have to say ok, enough babbling, onto the story!

'What's happening to me? Why do I feel so different?' were the thoughts that were running through James' head as the group traveled through the forest. He felt that odd, yet strangely familiar presence that he had felt before, and his newly acute hearing caught the sound of nails clicking on rocks as their owner passed over them.

James' eyes widened as a large black wolf trotted into the grove, panting slightly as if it had come a long distance. He rose from the crouch he had been in as he sat near John's sleeping form on the ground nearby. James looked at Chase questioningly, but the great stallion simply ignored the boy's look and watched the wolf approach.

When it trotted up to him, Chase snorted and nudged the large wolf gently. The wolf's tail waved gently in the air, and then turned to face James and John. James watched it approach warily and was surprised to hear a growl building in his own throat as the animal approached.

The wolf slowed and then stopped, head cocked to one side as it regarded the teen in front of it. After a moment of silence, James dropped his eyes from the burning stare of the wolf, and he tensed as it started forward again. The she-wolf eyed him warily, watching his body language as she approached, and continued walking cautiously up to him.

James looked down in surprise when the wolf brushed its head against his hand, whining softly. "What do you want?" he asked it quietly, confusion washing over his face as she tugged gently on his hand, her teeth barely denting his skin.

He looked at Chase with a questioning look, and the stallion snorted at him, almost as if he was laughing at the confusion on the teen's face. "Doesn't she look familiar? I believe you said you were rescued from the soldier by a large black wolf that looks like this one from how you described her," he told the bewildered teen.

James looked down at the wolf in front of him and frowned as he thought. Recognition flitted across his face as he realized what Chase had said was true, "You are the same one that saved us from the soldiers back there aren't you?" he said with surprise. The wolf barked quietly at this, tail waving in the air as she stood, and gently pulled on his hand again.

"She wants us to follow her is what she's telling you I believe," Chase told him, when James looked at him. "Why can't I understand her like I can understand you?" James asked Chase, and he pawed the ground. "Ar--, she's just not in the mood to talk right now I suppose." Chase told him. "But…you can understand her, can't you?" James stated.

Chase looked at the two, brown eyes traveling from boy to wolf, and the wolf stepped towards him with a snarl, head held low to the ground. Mane swinging, Chase shook his head, "Don't worry. I won't tell him. That's your job, along with helping him cope with what you blood has turned him into."

At this, James looked at the wolf in surprise, and saw her take a step back, whining as if in pain and shaking her head. Chase snaked his head forward, teeth bared in irritation and ears pinned back. "You can't leave him to deal with this on his own! You have a responsibility now and a liability as well now too, so accept it!" Chase said, his deep voice filled with hints of anger.

The she-wolf cringed slightly, her tail drooping until it brushed the ground. She walked to the edge of the clearing after tugging on James' hand a final time. James watched the wolf for a moment, then turned and picked John up. After placing him on Chase's back and swinging behind his dozing brother, Chase stepped forward and followed the black wolf silently, irritation tensing his muscles still.

The group traveled quietly through the dark forest for some time, breathing in the smell of pine needles and damp earth. "What did you mean earlier about her turning me into something?" James asked finally, breaking the silent tension. "Chase?" he asked after the stallion remained silent. The stallion shivered underneath him, and his sides rumbled as he breathed out hard.

"That is something that you'll be finding out for yourself soon enough. I leave it to her to help you and teach you." Chase finished, swinging his head towards the wolf pacing them. They traveled in silence for a while longer, and James let his mind wander until it landed on a thought.

"Hey!" he said suddenly, and Chase shied in surprise. "Where's Ari at? She said that she'd be right back, but it's been over an hour…" James said after checking his watch. The she-wolf snorted as if laughing, and Chase shook his head. "I wouldn't worry about her too much, she's fine, I know she is. We'll see in a bit, right?" Chase asked glancing questioningly at the black wolf next to them.

The wolf stumbled slightly and James looked at her with worry. Her eyes met his, and her was surprised at the color. 'Wait, weren't her eyes gold before? They're blue now…just like Ari's' he thought to himself. When he glanced at her again however, her eyes were the familiar shade of gold that he had seen before.

Finally, they reached a small clearing, and both the wolf and the stallion slowed to a stop. John stirred and looked around. Blinking, he looked at the large tree in front of them with unveiled surprise, "That tree's huge! Hey! Are we at wherever we were headed?" he asked. Chase bobbed his head, and both boys slid off of his back, James first and the John.

James started as the she-wolf suddenly ran at him and John with a snarl curled on her lips, until his ears caught the sound of boot moving stealthily through the underbrush nearby, and he scented the smell of gunpowder. The wolf herded them towards a hill and then struck the knot in the center of the old trees trunk. She then pushed both boys into an opening that was revealed when a large boulder slid aside.

As she darted in behind Chase and the two boys, the stone slid back shut, and outside, shouts filled the clearing. "Where are they? They were just here, where did they go?" men shouted. James saw the wolf standing near an almost hidden window, peering out at the scene the men outside were causing.

With a shake of her head, she dropped back to the ground and trotted over to Chase. 'They won't find us. Even if they did, they'd regret finding us, wouldn't they?' she thought to Chase, her lips pulled back in a grin, revealing sharp deadly teeth, and he bobbed his head in agreement.

A/N: So yeah, little short in comparison to how long mine usually are, but I'm sure that I'll make up for it in the next two chapters keep up the reviews people, seriously, I love to know what you think! And of course, input in the John, James, Ari idea is appreciated as always!


	22. Acceptance?

A/N: As promised this chapter's much longer than the last one for sure, I think I actually might split it into two separate c

A/N: As promised Sorry to keep you waiting, this chapter's much longer than the last one for sure, I think I actually might split it into two separate chapters to keep it at a reasonable length, because it would be way too long if I didn't. Thanks again for the reviews, keep them coming, and I'll keep updating as often as I can!

John watched as the wolf paced the room quietly. He sighed, and then gingerly slid down the wall until he was sitting on the floor. His eyes closed briefly as the dull ache in his back flared again, and when he reopened them, he saw James watching his with worry in his eyes.

"We need to get you back cleaned up, or at least bandaged." James said, walking towards one of the bedrooms. He returned with a large blanket that he spread out on the floor. "Sit here and take your shirt off. Is there some hydrogen peroxide in the bathroom?" James asked Chase. The stallion bobbed his head and swung his head in the direction of the cabinets in the bathroom, and James went and searched through them for a moment.

John gingerly stood and then sat down on the blanket. He peeled off his shirt, wincing as dried blood pulled away from his skin and sat cross-legged on the thick blanket. He watched as the wolf approached him carefully. "Lay down, it'll make cleaning those gashes a little easier," Chase directed John, and with a sigh, the teen complied.

As John stretched out on his stomach, resting his head on his arms, the light overhead revealed the injuries that covered James' brothers back. Red, angry welts crisscrossed his back, some still bleeding slightly, and James choked back a gag, "Shit…" he breathed.

Worry twisted in Ari's stomach as she looked at the injuries and saw the faint spider lines of infection coming from many of the gashes, and the wolf whined softly. James poured some peroxide onto the towel that he had found and he began dabbing it onto the wounds.

John groaned as the liquid hit the wounds and began bubbling. He grit his teeth against the pain as a new wave flashed over him. "Sorry bro…this is going to hurt like hell. I've got to get these cleaned. Hang in there, I'll try to be fast," James told him as he dabbed at his twins back again. John squeezed his eyes shut, tension lined in his whole body and he shuddered as his world filled with searing pain.

His eyes flew open again when something warm brushed against his face. With a soft whine, the she-wolf lay in front of him, sliding her head forward so it rested on his shoulder. Brow furrowed in thought, John unfolded his arms and rested on his elbows. the wolf moved her head and curled between his arms so that her paws were curled between his arms so that her paws were curled towards his chest.

James watched, a small smile tugging at his lips, as his brother wrapped his arms around the furry mass and rested his head on the wolf's side. She lay her head gently on his shoulder and closed her eyes with a soft whine. Chase snorted and shook his head, bronze mane gleaming as it swung. "They're gone finally," he said as he looked outside, "I'll go take a look around," he said, stepping out the door.

James nodded and began dabbing at the John's wounds again. John threaded his hands through the dense black fur as he grit his teeth against the pain again. He turned his face into the thick fur, feeling embarrassed by the tears of pain that were slipping down his face. 'You've got to at least comfort him or something! If you want me to rest, you'd better do something, or else.' Ari told her other half.

The wolf dropped her head, chagrined and Ari pushed through the wolf's mind, the animal's eyes shifting momentarily from gold to blue. She nudged his cheek gently with her nose and he turned his face towards her. His eyes widened in surprise when he saw that the she-wolf's eyes were a clear piercing blue instead of the gold he had previously seen.

She stared back at him steadily until a thought came to her. "Do you think that we can pull his mind into ours to distract him for a bit?' Ari asked the wolf. The wolf just flicked her ears in response, 'If you're going to help him, you might as well start somewhere, he's dying already so it should be easy.' Ari nodded and went back from her meeting with her other half.

John felt the wolf rest her head by his and whine quietly. He heard a song being hummed near his ear and slowly, darkness began to cloud his vision, pulling him under into a black abyss. He struggled against it briefly until he heard a voice speaking to him, "shh you'll be ok, I promise that I won't hurt you. Just trust me and let the song lead you," it told him. 'Anything's better than this pain right now, what do I have to lose?' and with that, John let the darkness wash over him as he drifted into a deep, dreamless sleep.

James noticed the tension disappearing from his twin's body as his muscles relaxed. 'Well, I suppose it isn't entirely bad if he's out for a while…' James mused as he continued cleaning the gashes on his brother's back.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Ari sat on a grassy hillside. Curled next to her lay a sleeping John, his head resting on her lap. Nearby, the wolf dozed in the warm summer heat. A faint smile graced Ari's lips as she sat there humming a soft tune as she stared into the distance, one hand absently toying with John's hair, the other resting on his bare chest.

Ari looked down at him and saw his eyelids flutter and slowly open. John's brown eyes slowly focused on her smiling face and he became aware of where he was laying. "I – I am so sorry!" he stammered, struggling to raise himself up. Ari laughed, a light breezy sound and helped him up, standing and offering him her hand.

"It's fine, you were sleeping pretty soundly, so I wasn't going to wake you up" she told him, smiling at the blush coloring his face as she pulled him up. He cleared his throat and grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. Both teens turned at the sound of barking from behind them. Ari laughed at the sight of her other half chasing a hawk. "Is it just a huge coincidence or am I just imagining it? It's the same wolf as before, but where are we?" John muttered to himself.

"Hmm?" Ari said, looking at him with a smile. John shook his head, "Nothing really. Just noticing how her fur and your hair are really similar. I'm sure it's just a coincidence though, it's not like you can be her or anything…" he said with a nervous laugh. "Where are we anyways?" he asked, looking around in confusion.

'He'll hate you afterwards' a voice inside Ari nagged. 'I won't hide, I have to tell him sooner or later!' she retorted stubbornly. Ari sighed, "I need to talk to you about something. You don't have to believe me, but please listen and hear me out." John nearly objected until he saw the pleading look that she had in her eyes. "Ok. I don't know what this is all about, but ok. Let's walk for a bit shall we?" he said, looking at her with a smile and taking her hand and twining his fingers in hers.

The two walked for a little bit in silence until John nudged her and gave her a searching look. "Just give me a minute to sort out what I want to say." Ari said quietly. John nodded and waited for her to begin. He heard her take a deep breath and then she began, hesitantly at first, her voice gaining strength as she went on.

"Everyone has secrets that they would rather others not know. I'm no different. Except my secrets a little… different." Ari took another deep breath, "I'm a wolf who is sometimes a human, and a human who can sometimes be a wolf. I'm not part of either world; I'm forever between the two…"she said.

Ari went onto tell him everything, not meeting his eyes or looking at him. "I didn't mean for anything to happen to you or James, it was the very last thing that I would have wanted for either of you. I don't know how to change James back, and you're dying…I've screwed this all up so badly, and I have no idea how to fix it! I can heal you, but I risk turning you as well, and I can't do that to you too!" Ari finished, her words falling out in a rush.

John looked at the beautiful girl in front of him, horror and confusion mixing in his eyes. "I won't blame you if you hate me, but please, say something, anything," she whispered, raising her face to meet his eyes. "I…I don't know what to say." John said, taking her tear stained face. 'I need time to think…" he said, turning and walking away from her without another word.

As she watched him walk away, she felt more hot tears slip down her face. 'You couldn't have thought that he'd just accept you without blinking twice did you?' the voice inside her told her disdainfully. "No…but I had hoped…" she whispered as she sank down into the jade grass.

Footsteps came near her and then stopped. Ari continued to stare at the ground at her feet. "Oh, come now. He'll be back, he has to after all. You brought him here and only you can help him go back," said the black wolf, swiping the tears off of Ari's face with her tongue. "But what if I've ruined everything? I told him everything, it was so hard, but I had to! I had to make him understand…" Ari whispered. The wolf snorted, "I still hold to what I told you before—he'll accept you. I'll be back in a bit," she told the girl, who nodded in return.

The wolf trotted off, following John's scent until she found him. He jumped slightly when she brushed against him and then sighed when he met her stare. "Don't look at me like that! How was I supposed to respond? She's not even human! What do you care anyways?" he said, throwing an angry glare back at the wolf.

Seconds later, he was flat on his back. He cringed as she snapped her jaws shut near his throat. "She trusted you! She trusts so few people as it is; she doesn't need you throwing everything that she told you back in her face! How dare you say she isn't human? Why should that change anything? And I care because she's as much a part of me as your mind is a part of you! She told you all of that because she trusted you." the wolf told him as she stepped off of his chest and stalked away.

"Oh, and before you throw humanity in her face, keep in mind that James is the same as her now." She threw over her shoulder as she walked away. John watched her leave, sadness and distress marring his features. Surprise washed over his face when he realized that the she-wolf was right, and he got up and ran after her.

At the sound of his footsteps approaching, she turned and sat, waiting for him. "Please, take me to her. Please." John gasped out when he caught up to her. With a nod, the black wolf turned and led him towards the pond that Ari sat next to. John looked at the wolf in confusion when she sat on the crest of a nearby hill, but he understood when she flicked her ears towards Ari, he had to do this on his own.

He took a deep breath and walked towards her. As he approached, John noted how her body tensed, and she shivered. "Ari…"he said softly. John saw her flinch as she turned to face him. He winced at the pain and sadness in her eyes, knowing that he was the cause of it all. He knelt in front of her, "I'm so sorry. That was incredibly rude of me earlier." John said, as fresh tears flooded her blue eyes.

John pulled her up and into a hug, holding her tightly as she buried her face in his chest. "You're still you," he whispered to her, and he felt her tears trickling from her face onto his bare skin. The two stood like that for some time, Ari relaxing slowly as she breathed in his calming scent, feeling the warmth of his body enveloping her as he held her, and he rested his head gently on top of hers, breathing in the smell of pine and flowers in the long warm hair that flowed over his arms.

When she drew back, his brown eyes searched hers and she gave him a tentative smile. At this, he let out a sigh of relief and squeezed her gently. "I'm so so--," he started to say, when she pressed her finger against his lips, stopping him from finishing his sentence. He looked at her in confusion and she smiled. "You don't have to keep apologizing, I forgive you." Ari told him softly. John nodded, and she took her finger from his lips.

A/N: So what did you think? I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, so I hope that you enjoyed it! Let me know which twin Ari should end up with in your opinion, and I'll take it into consideration in the upcoming chapters leave me reviews please!


	23. Changes

A/N: Hey again! Sorry I've been so terrible about updating this, I promise that I'll finish as soon as I can alright? So anyways, here's the next chapter of the story and the next one should be up soon too, I just have to put some finishing touches on it! So…enjoy!

As the sun began to set and the sky mixed shades of orange and red, two teens walked side by side through the thick, green grass. The two walked in silence for a long period of time until the sun began to drop below the horizon and dusk began to settle over the land.

John cleared his throat suddenly and stopped, turning to face Ari. "So…I'm dying huh? Anyway you can…help me in the same way that you helped James? I mean I know it wouldn't be easy but its better than…you know…" he finished quietly, his dark eyes glancing down. Ari looked at him thoughtfully for a moment, the, "Yeah, I can heal you, but you run the risk of becoming what James is now." she told him, the hesitation she felt creeping into her voice.

When she met his eyes, Ari was surprised to see a softness and warmth that she had never seen before in them. "I wouldn't mind. You've managed for your whole life, I'm sure that you'll have hints on how to handle the whole change or something like that. I can adjust, don't worry about me. Its better than death, that's for sure." he said, holding her blue eyes with his brown.

Biting her lip, Ari smiled uncertainly. "I was born as this though…" she reminded him gently, and he smiled faintly as he turned to watch the sunset. "I know. I just…I just don't want to die." John said, closing his eyes, his deep voice cracking slightly.

Ari gazed at the teen in front of her, realization dawning in her eyes. "You're afraid of death aren't you?" she asked him. When John turned to face her again, she saw that his defenses were back up, and his tone was more guarded when he spoke. "What makes you think that?" he said gruffly, his eyes darkening in warning, telling her to choose her words carefully. Ari smiled and shook her head gently. "John…it's ok. You don't have to be strong all the time you know. I just want you to be one hundred percent sure before I run the risk of changing you forever. Once you've been turned, there's no going back. You'll be forever between worlds, never quite belonging in either." Ari said softly, and John relaxed slightly.

"I'm terrified of dying," John admitted quietly, glancing down swiftly "but I can't stand the thought of leaving James or you." He finished. Ari smiled and gently placed her hand under his chin, lifting it up. Standing on her tiptoes, she rested her forehead against his, and John felt his face flush when he felt her lips brush against his cheek. "ok then. I guess that we should head back then.." Ari said with a smile on her lips. That said, she grasped one of John's hands and the world around them dissappered, and in its place was the small house that was hidden in the forest that they had been in originally.

John stood next to Ari as he gazed around the room in surprise. He took a slight step back when he saw himself laying on the floor and James dozing nearby. "How…" he breathed quietly. Ari laughed, and gave him a hard shove towards himself. John stumbled heavily, and felt himself start to fall. As he struggled to remain somewhat upright, his feet were suddenly kicked out from under him, and he fell forward with a surprised cry towards himself. Ari laughed and placed her hand gently on the dozing wolf's head, and felt their minds reconnect as her hand touched the thick black fur.

John's eyes flew open and he drew in a deep breath as he sat up. As he did so, he met the twinkling blue eyes of the black wolf as she gazed at him, amusement in her eyes and he glared at her. "You couldn't have done that another, I don't know, easier way?" he grumbled, wincing as he felt him wounds reopen again. "I could have, but that would have just been too easy." She told him, her mouth widening to reveal her sharp teeth in the wolfish form of a grin. Her bright blue eyes closed briefly, and to John it looked like she shimmered for a moment, and then Ari was sitting in the wolf's place.

Ari stood with a grin and walked towards the sleeping James, ruffling John's hair as she passed. She knelt in front of James' sleeping form, watching him for a moment and then smirked as he stirred. His eyes slowly opened, and she began to stretch when his eyes finally focused on the 

shining blue eyes in front of his. "AHHH!" James yelled as he fell backwards in surprise. Ari laughed and stood gracefully, offering him her hand to help him up.

"Ari! When did you get here? How?" James demanded as he took her hand and stood, glad to see her alive and well still. Her eyes sparkled as she smiled, "I came in while you were sleeping, so I didn't wake you up. And I walked. It's not hard to follow a trail if you know what you're looking for" she told him.

Her face filled with surprise and shock when she found herself wrapped in a bear hug, while behind them, John's eyes narrowed in irritation. "I'm so glad you're back and safe! I was worried when you didn't come back like you said you would," James told her as he released her, "Don't you dare do anything like that again ok?" he asked her, and she nodded with a smile, "deal". James looked around in surprise, "Where'd that wolf go?" he asked, noticing the black wolf's absence. "She's nearby." John told him curtly as he moved to stand beside Ari, his irritation still present as was reflected in his tone.

James looked at his brother in confusion, 'What's got his ire up?' he wondered. Ari glanced at John and saw the anger lurking deep in John's eyes as he tried to hide it from her, and she frowned. 'What's gotten him so upset?' she wondered to herself, and the wolf snorted at her in laughter. 'What?' she asked her other half. 'That hug didn't sit well with him. He's jealous. You and I know that the kiss you gave him was meant as a brother/sister type, but he doesn't know that.' She told the girl, laughing at her cluelessness. ' I care about him, but more like he's a brother than anything.' Was her last thought to the wolf before she turned back to the two boys next to her.

Sighing, she turned to face John, "You sure about what we were talking about before? You really want to go through with it?" she asked him seriously, and James looked at them, raising an eyebrow in confusion. John nodded and Ari closed her eyes with a sigh. "ok..James, can you go get me some plants? Chase'll help you find what I need." Ari asked James. "Sure that shouldn't be too much a problem. What am I looking for?" he asked curiously. Ari grabbed a nearby piece of paper and neatly wrote down some plants that she would need in the future and handed it to him. She walked after him to find Chase while John remained inside, glaring at his brothers back.

"What's his problem?" James asked, hurt evident on his face as he turned to face her after the door slid shut again. She shook her head, "Don't worry about it. I'll talk to him and get it worked out while you look with Chase for the plants." she told him, and he nodded in return. "Chase go with him and help him find the herbs on the list ok?" she told the great bronze stallion, and he bobbed his head in answer. 'You're going to change him aren't you?' Chase asked her mentally, and she nodded with a sigh. 'I have no choice. It's either that or let him die, and I can't do that! So, at the moment, it's the only choice that I have to handle this…' she told him. Chase bobbed his head once more, 'Just make sure you can handle teaching two of them how to handle it since you're flipping both their lives inside out and upside down alright?' he asked her, his deep mahogany eyes serious. "Deal" Ari told him as James swung onto his back easily and the two headed off into woods.

Ari watched their shaped disappear, and retreated back into the house to deal with John. "What was that all about John?! That was really rude of you!" Ari said, confusion and anger coloring her voice. John looked at her in surprise, he had never seen her act like this before, and he wasn't how to answer her question himself. 'What was it all about…' he wondered, then sighed and cast his eyes to the ground. "Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm sorry I acted that way, really I am." He said, giving her a half hearted smile. Ari smiled back uncertainly, worry still in her eyes, 'he is jealous then…' she thought.

Ari looked at him and sighed. "Are you absolutely sure that you want to go through with this?" she asked him, and he nodded, wincing at the sudden pain he felt as he shifted on the floor. "Give me your hand then." Ari said, stretching her hand towards him. John looked at her outstretched hand uncertainly for a moment, and then placed his hand in hers.

'I'll help you out here, don't worry.' The wolf told her as she met John's steady eyes, her eyes darting from his hand in hers and then to his face. 'Thanks. I might need it…shall we begin again?' Ari asked her other half, and the wolf nodded. "Trust me alright?" Ari told John, and he nodded "ok", and Ari quickly drug her nail across his wrist quickly. His brown eyes flew open in shock and he tried to 

pull his hand free from her grip, but Ari simply tightened her hold and caught his panicked eyes with her own calm ones and he relaxed slightly, his muscles untensing.

As his blood pooled dark in his palm and dripped down from his wrist, Ari swiftly located the vein she would need and connected it to his. John gasped suddenly at the wave of pure, unrestrained energy that crashed into him as her blood mixed together with his. He glanced up at her, tearing his gaze from the two bloody wrists in front of him, and what he saw made him gasp in surprise. Ari's brow was furrowed in concentration as she focused on her task, but that didn't surprise him as much as the color that her eyes had turned and the large animal pressed against her side.

Her regular sky blue eyes had turned to a vibrant shade of amber-gold, and resting by her side was the same large black wolf he had met only moments ago. 'So I didn't imagine it…' he thought as he watched the pair. The wolf's eyes were trained onto the single connected vein intently, her gold eyes glowing faintly. Ari felt her other half lending her the strength that she needed to heal him, and John felt that same odd sensation that James had felt when he had been healed, sweep through him, the feeling that he wasn't the only inhabitant in his body. In that instant, Ari cut the vein and separated them from one another.

Ari rolled back on her heels and watched John with worried eyes, the gold slowly fading back to the original blue. John took several slow, deep breathes, "You doing ok?" Ari asked him, concern plain in her voice. John took another deep breath and then opened his eyes, nodded and smiled. "It feels weird, like I'm not just me anymore. And my wrists are already healed!" he said with surprise, turning his wrist over, his eyes shining with amazement while Ari just smiled and nodded.

"So that's it? I'm all headed now right?" John asked Ari curiously, and she nodded again. "You're as healed as I could make you, and according to the wolf, your scent's changed to match ours." Ari continued on to tell him. John was quiet for a moment, staring intently at his hands. "So…what's this all mean? Will it be obvious that I'm not…me anymore? Can I control it?" he asked her, fear suddenly dawning in his eyes. Ari frowned slightly as she thought, "I don't know…"she trailed off, "You and James are the only ones that this has ever happened to that I know of, so I have no idea what to expect or anything…"she finished. John looked at her thoughtfully for a few seconds, and then broke into a grin. He stretched and then flipped lightly to his feet, "Everything feels so different! This is going to sound dorky, but it's like someone took a huge weight off of me and I can actually move now!" he told her, grinning as he closed the distance between them in one fluid movement.

Ari froze at the sudden closeness of him, and swallowed hard upon seeing the surprisingly gentle look in his eyes, 'What's that look for?' Ari's mind raced as she struggled to think coherrantly for a moment. John's warm brown eyes locked with her shocked blue ones, and he smiled faintly. Before she knew it or was able to notice the tensing of his muscles that would have clued her that he was moving, she found herself wrapped in a tight hug. She went rigid for a moment, then slowly relaxed and rested her head against his chest, listening to the low steady beat of his heart.

"Hey." he said quietly, and Ari lifted her head from his chest and looked at him, drawing back slightly from his embrace. "Hmm? What's up?" she asked him with a curious smile. "I just wanted to say something." he said as he caught her gaze again. "Oh? What's that?" she asked him curiosity mixing with fear in her voice, slightly afraid to know his response. He dipped his head down swiftly, "Thank you." he murmured quietly into her ear, his breath tickling her as he spoke, and she shivered. Then, before either of them realized what was happening, he had lifted her chin up and kissed her gently and then stepped back, his face flushing red.

Ari stared at him in shock and confusion for a moment, startled by his actions. "You're welcome, I guess…" she said breathlessly as she stepped away from him. Her heart beating in her throat, Ari tried to take several deep breaths to calm herself, but found it impossible to draw in a normal breath. 'They're back, so you might want to compose yourself a little better' the wolf told Ari, amused by the teens reactions. Ari stepped swiftly away from John and began organizing things randomly around the room.

John smiled uncertainly as he watched her flit around the room, re-arranging everything that she saw or touched, her hair falling across her face in a curtain and obscuring it from view. 'I can't believe I kissed her…that was totally out of line…' he thought to himself, while at the same time 

remembering how kissing her had felt. He shook his head, trying to clear the image from his head and to concentrate on how he could apologize to her. 'Why would he…what was that for?' were the thoughts that were rushing through her head as she darted around the room. At the sound of the door sliding open, Ari spun to face the other dark haired teen, her face still flushed slightly.

"Hey! We're back and Chase and I found most of the plants that you wanted!" James said, smiling as he handed her a leafy bundle. Ari smiled her thanks as she took the plants from his outstretched hand, and turned to place them on table behind her. As she began sorting through the plants, John watched her, uncertainty warring with a desire to talk to her. He watched her talk with James for a moment, then stepped forward to stand next to her, his shoulder brushing against hers.

Ari jumped slightly at the touch, her eyes betraying some of the turmoil she felt inside as she glanced at him. John swallowed hard, and cast his eyes down in embarrassment as he recalled the scene from earlier, and his face flushed scarlet again. "So…what did you need all of these plants for anyways?" James asked her curiously as he watched her continue sorting out the plants. "They're just ones that are handy to have around, you never know when you'll need some of them. Angelica helps with fevers and stomach issues, Trillium for an antiseptic and you can make it into poultice for injuries, Bloodroot as an anti-inflammatory, Lobelia helps to draw out poison from snake and insect bites, Cinquefoil's roots when crushed and powdered can stop bleeding, and Quinene helps to detoxify the blood and helps wounds heal faster." Ari told him, pointing to each plant in turn as she described it. James stared at her in amazement, as did John, "How did you know all that off the top of your head?!" James asked her, a stunned look on his face.

Ari fell silent, her face more guarded than ever and her eyes unreadable. 'Mom…I miss you so much…' she thought as she remembered the woman that she so closely resembled, her eyes suddenly filling with tears. "Ari…?" James asked her quietly, a concerned look replacing his earlier amazement when he saw her expression. "It's nothing…" she whispered with a shake of her head as she placed the herbs in a nearby drawer. Both boys looked at one another, worry written on their faces, 'Something struck a chord there…' they both thought.

'Ari. You might want to go outside and take a look. We have some company.' The wolf told her, a grin forming on her face as she recognized the scent of the members of Kiba's pack. Ari turned to the door, ignoring the boys questioning looks. The door slid open, revealing the clearing outside to be in the shadows of dusk. As the last remnants of sunlight streamed through the tree's branches, a small band of wolves and a slender girl stepped into the clearing. Both twins had followed her outside to see where Ari was going, and both froze upon seeing the pack standing less than 15 feet away. Ari's eyes flew wide in surprise at the sight of the gathered pack, and slowly sank to her knees when she noticed the absence of the white wolf who had always led the pack. "Kiba…?" she whispered, and all of the wolves cast their eyes to avoid her questioning ones.

Review please!


	24. New Discoveries

A/N: So as promised, I'm trying to update this story as often as I can! Hopefully no more 4 month long breaks lol. Read and enjoy! And of course, I would love some reviews

As she fell to her knees, both twins stepped forwards to catch her, each grabbing her under an arm and held her up. "Ari…Hey, what's wrong?" John asked her, shaking her gently. She tore her eyes from the wolves nearby, turning her anguished, tear filled eyes to face the twins, then buried her face in James' chest, her tears soaking through his shirt. James looked down at her in surprise and then wrapped an arm around her back, his other hand twining its way through her hair as he rested his chin on the top of her head. "Shh…It's ok. You don't know anything for sure yet." James murmured to her, at the same time casting a shocked look at John, who looked back helplessly and shrugged.

The youngest member of the pack stepped forward, whining quietly as he presses against her legs, tugging gently at her skirt until she looked at him. Ari knelt down in front of the pup, and he whined, nudging his muzzle along her cheekbones and wiping away her tears. "Toboe…Is he safe?" Ari whispered, taking his face in her hands and twisting her hands through the thick tan fur. He whined once more quietly, as a blue eyed female stepped forward, a red scarf fluttering at her throat as she moved to kneel beside Ari. James frowned in confusion, "wait…where did she come from?" he asked John who simply shook his head when he realized the woman had been the blue eyed wolf. "Ari, please don't cry. Kiba's going to be fine, he's just a little beaten up. He stayed behind a ways so that he could be sure that Darcia wasn't trailing us at all, that's all." Blue said to Ari, her eyes pleading with her, and Ari sighed in relief. "He'll be here in a little while, he's just a few miles behind us." Blue continued on to tell Ari. As she finished speaking, John looked at the rest of the pack in surprise. Each wolf had been replaced by a human who now stood in its place. They moved forward as a unit to surround Ari as she stood. John and James both tensed, their eyes narrowing, 'If they try to hurt her…' both twins thought. Chase, who had been watching the whole scene stepped forward, his mane draping partially over James' shoulder as he stood near the teen. "Relax, she'll be fine, they won't harm her in any way at all." Chase told James, and both teens relaxed slightly.

Stepping forward gracefully, the red eyed girl grasped both of Ari's hands. "This one is sorry for causing you to worry, that this one is." The flower maiden told her, and a wave of calm floated over Ari as the strange girl began to hum a soft melody and Ari's eyes began to close. As her knees buckled and she began to fall, Ari whispered 'Cheza…" wonder and amazement plain in her voice, and then her eyes crashed shut, and darkness swallowed her. Moving swiftly, the older man with the cross shaped scar on his chest stepped forward to catch the falling girl, scooping her gently into his arms and lifting her easily. He turned and nodded towards James, "Is there somewhere I can put her where she would be more comfortable?" he asked, and James nodded, motioning for the man to follow him. Tsume placed Ari on one of the beds that she had made earlier, resting his hand on her head briefly with a faint smirk before turning to leave the room.

Outside, the rest of the wolves had begun to introduce themselves to both boys. "Tsume." stated the man who had carried Ari moment ago in a curt tone, his golden eyes bored. "Blue, nice to meet you." said the female who had originally spoken with Ari. "Hi! My name's Toboe!" said the youngest member of the pack, a boy with short brown hair, the bracelets on his wrists jangling as he placed his arms behind his head. "I'm Hige." This from the slightly chubby looking male who wore a sweatshirt and an unusual collar around his neck said. "This one is named Cheza. This one is so excited to meet other wolves who know Kiba!" said the red eyed girl who danced forward gracefully. "Other wolves? What is she talking about? Where did those wolves go anyways?!" James asked startled. Chase stepped forward suddenly and spoke in a quiet undertone to the flower maiden. Whose eyes widened in understanding. "They do not know what they are?" she asked Chase, who shook his head, his long forelock falling into his eyes. "Ahh…well. This one shall let her deal with this as according to her wishes!" Cheza finished, spinning to face the group again with a smile dancing on her lips.

The group ventured back inside the hidden house after a few moments, and began telling of how they had escaped from the crumbling keep. After about 30 minutes, James turned to John, "I'm going to check on Ari and see how she's doing ok?" he told his twin, and John nodded, faint irritation flashing in his eyes and the muscles in his jaw tightened slightly. For the next several hours, John and James switched between watching over Ari, neither wanting her to wake up alone. It was much later in the afternoon when Ari finally awoke, the last of Cheza's song finally wearing off. Over the course of those hours, Kiba had finally met up with the rest of his pack, and had introduced himself to both twins properly, chatting briefly with each of them. 'Both of them weren't wolves to start with, or they would have known what we were easily…how did they become what they are?' he wondered, and moved to stand near Chase and spoke with him quietly for some time before rubbing the stallions nose briefly before he loped into the woods with Tsume to find some food.

Ari sat up slowly, the blanket covering her falling away from her shoulders and pooling in her lap. As her eyes adjusted to the dim lighting in the room, her ears caught the sound of deep and steady breathing from beside her. She looked down, then smiled faintly and chuckled. Sitting on the floor beside the bed was James, his head resting on his crossed arms that were on the bed. Ari swung her legs off the bed and stood, gathering the blanket quietly in her arms. With a smile, she knelt beside the dozing boy and wrapped the blanket gently around his shoulders. She watched him for a moment, a gentle smile on her lips, then as she stood to leave, she brushed his hair off his forehead and placed a soft kiss on it. With that, she turned and left the room quietly.

Ari stepped into the main room, shutting the door silently behind her and moved swiftly away from the door when she saw the assembled group watching her. "James is sleeping" she told John with a smile, and he laughed, "Wondered what happened to him, he was in there for about an hour and a half." Ari laughed along with him and then turned to face Blue, "Is Kiba back yet?" she asked her, and Blue nodded, "Tsume and him just went out hunting for a little bit. They should be back pretty soon." She told Ari with a smile. Ari nodded, then placed a hand briefly on John's "I need to talk to you." Ari told him, her tone serious, and he nodded and followed her out the door as she left. ' God I bet she's mad about that kiss, I've got to apoligize now while I have the chance…' John thought to himself as he walked out the door.

The two teens walked a ways away from the house, and Ari leapt lightly onto a large boulder and settled gracefully onto it in one fluid movement. John stopped a few feet away from her, his brown eyes filled with apprehension. Ari took a deep breath and looked at him steadily, her blue eyes holding his worried brown ones. "Don't worry, I'm not mad about the kiss, although it was kind of unexpected" she stated with a smile, and he sighed in relief. "But that's not what I wanted to talk about…I suppose that since I changed you into something you were never meant to be, I should teach you how to handle it, right?" Ari told him with a smile, and then turned serious. "I know that you're handling this decently, and I'm really glad you aren't freaking out or anything yet, but how do you think James will handle this?" she asked him, worry entering her eyes.

John was quiet for a moment, 'I already knew what I was getting into, while he has no idea whatsoever about any of this…' he thought, frowning slightly. He repeated his thoughts to her and Ari sighed. "Maybe…show him? He should be able to handle it. I can always help, you just have to show me how." John told her with a faint smile, and Ari nodded slowly, "That could work…" she mused, then shook her head, clearing it "You ready to start learning?" she asked him. John looked at her in surprise, "Now?" he asked her, cocking his head and raising an eyebrow, and Ari nodded, "OK, why not." John said, his smile broadening into a grin. Ari slide smoothly from her perch and motioned for him to follow her.

They walked a short distance into the woods coming to a stop when they entered a clearing that held a small lake surrounded by rocks . Ari sat in the grass and motioned for him to do the same, "Alright. First things first. You have to learn how to talk to your wolf before anything else. Close your eyes and clear your mind the best you can. Focus on your breathing and pay attention to any changes you hear or smell." She told him, and John closed his eyes, his shoulders relaxing as he did as she told him. Suddenly he gasped, and his eyes flew open with shock "What…what was that?!" he demanded. "What happened?" Ari asked him, her lips curving into a smile. He described the experience to her, "It was weird, one second I'm hearing all the birds and things and the next, I hear someone laughing at me. So I opened my eyes to see what was funny, but what I saw wasn't this place…it was somewhere else entirely. I was sitting on a hillside, kind of like the one where I found out about you, and theres this big tan and black wolf's staring at me with a grin…it was so bizzare!" he finished, his eyes filled with amazement. "Well, you've seen what you look like then. Now try it again. This time don't be afraid, he won't hurt you, after all he is you. It should be a bit easier each time you try." Ari told him with a smile. John grinned, and then closed his eyes to try again. Ari watched him with a smile, noting the changes in his expression as he fell back into the same place. 'He learns pretty quickly, I thought it would take a lot longer than just one try. Maybe some people are just more adept at it…' she thought to herself.

After his eyes closed, John quickly was able to find that same place in his mind that he had met his other half, and he felt his mind be drawn into it. He opened his eyes again, and found himself in the same meadow as before, and watching him was the same wolf. The two stared at one another for a moment, and then John cleared this throat as a thought came to him. "Can we…make contact or will something bad happen?" he asked sheepishly, and the wolf scoffed at him and stood. Standing, the wolf was larger than even John had expected, and looked to be strong. It moved smoothly towards him and John extended his hand slowly towards it, feeling the thick coat brush past his fingers as the wolf slide its head under John's extended hand. John smiled slowly, and ran his fingers through the dense fur, "So…how do we do what Ari does? You know, flip between the forms?" he asked the wolf, who sat in front of him. "Easy. There's two ways. One, you can simply imagine me and you'll change, or you can let me know mentally what you need done." The wolf told him, and John looked at him in surprise, 'Its voice is the same as mine almost... wierd' he thought. "You should probably head back soon though, or Ari will be worried." The wolf told him as it stood to leave. As it walked away, it suddenly stopped and turned to face him again. "You're brother cares a lot about her you know? I know you do too, trust me I know, but in this case, I'd let him make the final call before you continue down that path. Wait and see what he's going to do before you do anything at all." That said, it turned and walked away. John frowned for a moment, then opened his eyes again, this time back in the clearing with Ari.

"So? How'd it go? You were out of it for a while." Ari commented, frowning lightly at the perplexed look on his face. 'What was that all about…?' he thought before shaking his head and answering Ari's question. "It went well. I was able to talk to him and everything…but he did say something weird…" John trailed off, and Ari raised her eyebrows in confusion. "Its nothing. He just told me something I need to think about for a while." John told her with a shake of his head. Ari shrugged,"Ok. You feel up to another lesson?" she asked, and John nodded. "Ok, this time, I want you to try to change forms." Ari told him. "Everyone has a different way of doing it, so you'll kind of have to figure it out on your own.." she said, and he nodded.

John called to mind the wolf several times, and tried to imagine it, but each time, he only ended up frustrated that he couldn't quite manage it. "John. Take it easy. Its ok if you don't manage it the first few times, really." Ari told him soothingly, as she placed a hand on his arm. He jumped at her touch, and she saw his eyes flicker to a bright gold as the wolf inside him gained slight control. "John. Listen to me really quick ok?" she said, and he turned his still gold eyes towards her in irritation. "You've got to relax. You're trying too hard, and not giving him a chance to get any kind of control. Relax." Ari told him gently, and John nodded slowly, and worked on relaxing.

After about an hour of trying, "Why?! Why can't I do it? He made it sound so damn easy!" John growled in frustration and he struck the ground with his fist. "Easy now. I never said it would be simple, you just have to find something that connects you to him. Once you find that link, it will be a lot easier." Ari said, catching his hand as he lifted it to hit the ground again. She held his brown eyes with hers as she unfurled his tightly clenched hand gently and held it between hers. John's breath caught, and his chest tightened as a sudden emotion came over him, and his eyes flickered to gold again. "There. You almost had it. Whatever you were thinking about, partially connects you to him. Follow that link further this time." Ari told him, still holding his gaze and his hand. John took a deep breath, 'Wait..is she? Is she think link that I've been searching for for the last hour?' he wondered as he stared into her blue eyes. His vision suddenly dimmed and sharpened again, and he was acutely aware that something was different. Ari smiled, "There you go. Whatever you were thinking about, is your link to him. Look at my hands." She told him as she uncupped her hands to reveal a large tan paw.

Ari laughed as the black and tan wolf in front of her jumped up suddenly and spun in a circle. "I have a tail!" John barked in laughter, and Ari grinned. "Now look at me. What do you see?" she asked him, and John turned to face her. In her place sat a large black wolf with silver in its fur, the same one that he had seen before, and then it flickered, almost too quickly to catch and Ari sat there again. "Try it. You have to be able to change between forms easily." Ari instructed him. John bobbed his head, and concentrated on his human form. Looking down he saw that he had hands again, and he met her eyes with a grin, and flipped back into the wolf. Ari laughed as he moved around the clearing, and shifted into wolf form herself. Stepping quietly, she moved near him, and when he turned to watch her, she leapt at him, knocking him over. Caught by surprise, he tumbled over with a yelp, rolling head over heels from the force of her blow, and when he rolled to a stop, the sound of her laughter reached his ears.

"What was that for?!" he demanded, and the black wolf only laughed harder. "You've got to be ready for anything! Try it out, try to knock me over." Ari challenged him as she passed in a wide circle around him. He stared at her in disbelief for a moment, and then grinned. "No holds barred?" he asked, and Ari nodded, "No holds barred. Give it your best shot." With that, John stood and began to circle as well. After a turn or two, he leapt towards her directly and landed where she had been seconds ago. Surprised, he looked around to find her, when suddenly something sharp nipped his side, "Eyes on your opponent at all times kid." She told him, dancing back as he whirled to face her, surprise in his gold eyes. "What was that for? I though the only goal was for me to knock you over?" he said in confusion, his eyes wide. Ari snorted, "Well that's certainly part of it. You have to learn to defend yourself and attack too, so I think we'll just combine it all into one." she replied, a grin revealing gleaming white teeth. "But…what if I hurt you?" John asked, as he attempted to dogde another of her attacks, only to receive another small gash in his side. Ari snorted, "Please. Try it."

John hesitated slightly, and suddenly he heard a voice speak to him "Kid, listen to what I've been trying to teach you! You've got to pay more attention to what I've been trying to say, don't block me out, it won't help you!" His other half told him angrily. He took a deep breath, "Ok, teach away." He told the wolf. Ari smiled, 'About time he started listening to what he has to tell him…' she thought, and moved to flank him from the left. After about 30 minutes, he felt that he had begun to improve and get the hang of it, nearly flipping Ari twice before she called the lesson to a close. Both switched back to human form, their skin showing the damages they had received in the scuffle. Ari had gashes on her arms and legs, and John had them scattered all over his body. "Not bad. You got the hang of it after a while. We'll keep doing this everyday until you can beat me in a real fight." Ari told him with a grin "And don't worry about hurting me." She told him when she noticed the concern in his eyes. She scooped a handful of water into her hand and washed away the blood from her wounds and John copied her, taking slightly longer as he had several more than her.

Ari helped him stand, and the two walked back towards the hidden house. They walked in silence until John finally had the courage to talk. "Hey…" he said uncertainly, and she paused to look at him, a questioning look in her eyes. 'Here goes…' he thought, "About that kiss from earlier…I'm sorry. That was really of out of line…I really don't know what else to say other than I'm sorry and I shouldn't have. It was just a spur of the moment thing I guess, but I feel terrible." He told her quietly. "Can you forgive me?" he asked her, his eyes pleading. Ari smiled and closed her eyes. "Dork. Don't worry about it, I forgive you. Now come on, its getting dark." Ari told him, grabbing his hand as she walked past him, and he smiled. "Thanks." He told her softly, and she squeezed his hand in response before she let it go. The reached the camp within moments and reentered the house.

By this time, Kiba and Tsume had returned and Blue and Hige were making dinner, aided by Toboe and James. Ari's eyes lit up when she saw her brother and she launched herself at him. Kiba swiftly set down the plates he had been putting on the table and caught her in a hug, spinning her around in a circle, and both of them laughing, and the rest of the room looked on and smiled. "I'm so glad that you're ok!" Ari told Kiba with a grin, and he smiled. "I'm glad you're ok too." Kiba told her softly before he released her. He noted the partially healed gashes on her arms and raised his eyebrows in question, "I'll explain later…" she told him with a sigh, and he nodded "ok".

The group ate dinner mostly in silence, interrupted only a few times by someone telling a story. Everyone helped to clear the table off afterwards, and then they all lounged in the living room for a while. 'Now…how do I explain all this to James…I have to figure this out, and soon…'Ari thought to herself, 'Man I need to go for a run…' she thought with a sigh. Stretching, Ari stood and headed towards the door. "Where are you headed off to?" James asked her curiously, and Ari paused with one hand on the doorframe, "I need some fresh air, that's all." She said without looking back, and stepped out the door. Once outside, Ari stood, feeling the moonlight wash over her, the night breeze blowing her dark hair back, the moonlight sparkling off of the silver in her hair. She moved quietly towards the woods, but paused when she heard someone speak behind her. "Somethings bothering you, isn't it?" John asked as he crossed the clearing to stand beside her.

Ari sighed, "I just can't figure out how to tell James…And I have no idea how he'll react either…" she murmmured as she leaned against him. John snorted in disbelief and then pulled her into a hug, "It'll be ok. If you need my help, just ask, I know how to handle him pretty well when he starts freaking out." John told her quietly, as he rubbed her back and felt the tension lining her muscles "Now come on. You need to relax, so lets go for a jog." John told her, his now amber eyes serious. Ari smiled and nodded, "Sounds good." she told him, grinning as they slipped into the woods at a lope.

From inside the house, James let the curtain fall back over the window and frowned in irritation. 'What was that all about…?' he wondered, and then sighed in frustration. "You look like you need to go for a walk you know that? It'll clear your head." Blue said to him in an undertone as she passed by him, and he looked at her in surprise. "You'll be fine. If you get in trouble, all you have to do is yell and someone will be there in less than a minute. Go clear your head, you'll feel better afterwards." Blue told him, ruffling his hair and then pushing him towards the door. He paused uncertainly and then slide the door open and stepped out into the clearing, the door clicking shut behind him.

James wandered almost aimlessly through the dense woods trying to remember how to get back to the house, when he heard laughter up ahead. "John, you are such a dork!" James heard Ari call out, and he paused, wondering if he should get closer or not. Curiousity soon won out and he moved at quietly as he could towards the two voices. He paused on the outskirts of a small clearing, the same one that Ari and John had been in earlier, and hid in the shadows for a moment.

Ari laughed as the large black and tan wolf roamed around the clearing, and then smiled when he paused beside the water. He stared at his reflection for a moment, and then dipped his head towards it. At the last second before his nose touched the he sneezed, dunking half his muzzle in the lukewarm water, causing him to sneeze even more. Ari burst out laughing and walked over to sit beside him. She rested a hand breifly on his back, and then shifted. The two wolves sat side by side for a moment laughing, until Ari heard the sound of bushes moving. The black and silver wolf spun around in surprise, shock in her eyes when she met the terrified look in James' eyes as he stumbled backwards. John swore silently when he saw his twin spin to run, and he leapt across the clearing in three bounds, shifting back to human midstride, and tackled his brother as he attempted to run into the woods.

"What are you!? You're not human!" James whispered in a horrified voice, and Ari winced. "James, listen to me. It's ok. We're both still the same people that you knew, but this is also who we are now, and you're no different. Ari had to do this, or neither of us would have survived this long, she had no choice. We may not be entirely human, but you aren't either, at least not anymore. We can't go back, this is what we are now! James!" John yelled after him as his twin shoved him off of his chest and stumbled into the woods. "Let him go." Ari said softly as she stood, her eyes clouded, and John turned back to face her. "I'm sorry…that wasn't quite how he should have learned was it? Are you ok?" John asked her quietly as he moved to stand beside her, and she gave him a pained smile. 'That's twice now that the question of humanity has been thrown at her. First you, and now James. How do you think she feels?' John's other half told him softly, and John winced. "Oh Ari…I'm sorry…he didn't mean it I'm sure…" he told her as he encircled her with his arms, and she rested her head against his chest and wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Does it really matter so much what I am? What the group of us are? I never thought it would, Ally never minded, niether did Lynn, they just accepted it…None of us can change what we are, it's a part of us, it's _who_ we are." Ari said and John nodded "I know. He just has to figure it out for himself now, that's all." he told her, and she sighed. John held her for a moment and then stepped back with a smile. "Come on. He'll be back in a while. Let's head back alright?" he asked her, and then cocked his head in confusion when she shook her head. "No… you go ahead. I'm going to stay out here for a while…Don't worry I'll be fine" she added when she saw the concerned look on his face. John sighed after a minute and nodded, "Ok, but be careful. Don't take too long alright?" he asked her, and she smiled with a nod. He cast one last worried look at her before he melted back into the woods, and headed towards the house.

A/N: So I hope you guys liked this, I had a good time writing this chapter, so let me know what you thought ok?


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